Accident? (RinXLen) - My First FanFiction!
by Kalidreamine
Summary: Len tries to keep Rin close to him as a sister, and away from the sister-nabbing Kaito, but when certain accidents happen, Len isn't quite so sure he'll be successful. Rin is puzzled by her brother's strange overprotective behavior and continues to go on with her seemingly wonderful life, being in love with Kaito. When new problems arise, how will Rin and Len cope with them?
1. Accident

**A/N: Noncest here, folks! You'll find out why in Chapter 2! ;)**

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**Accident? (RinXLen) **

**Chapter 1**

**Len's POV**

I woke up to hear the boring voice of my math teacher, Ms. Yowane, droning on about parabolas, quadratic equations, blah blah blah. I was tired! I already knew that stuff. She didn't need to go that far back. It was useless. I was smart enough to move on. I was the best at math in class, anyway.

My sister, Rin? She was not so good. So I had to help her with her problems every day, but I didn't mind. Rin was nice enough about it. She was a good sister to me and a good friend to everyone. Whenever she needed guidance, I'd be at her service. Of course, she wasn't getting any better, but at least I got to spend more time with Rin, my awesome sister!

As I raised my head up from my desk, I looked at the clock. How long had I been out? I squinted at the time.

To my right, a voice called," It's almost time for class to end anyway, Len." As I gazed at the person and tried to focus, I could see my twin sister, Rin, smiling directly at me. "Thanks, sis," I replied thankfully. I could just not read time as well as I could do math! If only...

The bell rang. "You are dismissed! " Ms. Yowane called aloud.

"Finally! I was beginning to get a headache from all that math!" I groaned, relieved.

"And I was just starting to get what she was saying!" Rin muttered sadly.

"Don't worry, Rin. I'll help you as long as you need help. I'll always be around if you need me," I assured Rin. Gee, she was so cute!

"Thanks, Len. I don't know what I'd do without a brother like you!" Rin said cheerfully. She then marched off to her next class, with that terrible teacher, Kaito! Gee, he sure gets on my nerves! He makes me go bananas! Hey, bananas! Yay!

I've heard from Rin's friend Miku that she likes Kaito. Young, smart, kind, generous, forgiving, patient, funny, hardworking, careful, tall, handsome Kaito. What's not to like about Kaito? I don't know! I just can not sleep knowing Kaito is Rin's chemistry teacher. By goodness, they don't even have a good chemistry! I was thinking all this while walking to my next class: history.

The day passed in a blur. The final bell rang, dismissing us home. I caught up with Rin.

"So, how was chemistry with Kaito?" I asked her.

"Oh! It was great! We made ice cream and had a party! Kaito said he threw it in honor of me! He made an orange-flavored ice cream for me! I loved it!" she exclaimed excitedly.

"I'm really glad to hear that you're Kaito's favorite, still. You've always been the best at chemistry," I said to her with a fake happy tone. _So, Kaito. You decide to take my sis away from me, huh? Well, you're not getting her. I'll make her happier than you could ever make her!_

We covered the walk home in fifteen minutes. I opened the door with my key and we stepped inside.

Our house was a good sized house, I guess. It had furniture and everything and we lived together. Our parents had died years ago anyway and our aunt, Auntie Luka, supported us, paid the bills and deposited money into our accounts for us. She had no kids and was a rich and nice aunt, I guess. Use the money to support family _and _yourself. Good choice.

It had 4 bedrooms, 2 belonged to me and Rin, and the other two were guest bedrooms. The guest bedrooms each had their own bathrooms, and Rin and I shared a bathroom. We had a good-sized kitchen, and I was the chef. Rin bought the groceries and cleaned up the house. We each had our own duties.

I dropped my backpack on the floor and went to prepare a snack for us. Well, I had a banana and she had an orange.

Afterwards, we took turns using the bathroom to shower and changed into our pajamas. Rin wore a thin nightgown with straps, since it was fairly warm anyway. Me? Oh... DON'T laugh, but I sleep in my boxers. Rin doesn't laugh because she's already gotten most of that out when we first started living alone.

I made dinner and we quickly ate to save time for homework. I went to her room and helped her with her math homework. I explained to Rin every detail carefully, but it seemed as if she wasn't really able to understand something as simple as algebra. Calculus was really the harder one.

"Rin?" She had drifted off into space again. "Do you understand?"

Rin had been staring off into space. "Hm?" She snapped back into reality. "You see, Len... I was just thinking about it, and I get it now! I finally get it!" A grin spread on her face, and I grinned as well. I was so relieved. Now I could go to slee-

"Can you help me with calculus now?" she asked me. I felt a bit woozy. My grin disappeared. "Uh, Rin? I'm really sorry for ths, but-" I fainted onto her bed. Like, for real fainted. I blacked out totally.

I suddenly awoke to find myself sleeping on Rin's bed. She had lovingly pulled the covers over me. And I was still in my boxers. My banana boxers. Oh, well. Rin was curled next to me, breathing softly, calculus homework in her hand. I pulled it out of her grip and set it on her desk. Her other hand was near her mouth, and she was sucking on her thumb.

It was actually quite normal for her, this habit. I didn't mind. I thought it was kinda cute, actually. Like a little baby. Rin began to shiver. It was cold, and she had given all of the blankets to me. I pulled a blanket over her and she immediately snuggled in closer to me. I could smell her orange-scented shampoo. It was a strange smell, but good.

It was then that I noticed a draft on my pelvic area. If you know what I mean. Yep, there was a hole in my boxers. Whup. Big screwup! I was about to go and get up to change into a new set of boxers. I got up slightly and sat up. It was three in the morning.

Suddenly, Rin snuggled next to my boxer area when I had sat up, somehow reached at my boxers, and pulled them straight off. And.. she was now next to me, sucking on her thumb, and I was pretty much completely undressed. Oh, man! Oh, man, this was bad! This was bad bad bad!

How could this get any worse? I was freezing cold, and if I moved too much, she'd wake up! How could this happen? _Oh, Len! If only you weren't lazy and actually bothered to check for holes on your boxers!_

I seriously needed to go! I needed to go! Go NOW! And now I was thinking escape thoughts... _ Len, oh, Len. What will you do? Oh,... Darn._

I am really gross. Oh, man, what was Rin going to do when she woke up? Oh, bananas! Oh, no!

I was sweating something like 200 miles per hour, whatever! I was frantic! Rin was sleeping, I couldn't get up, and I had to face Rin when she woke up! What would she do? If she saw me in my weak state and took pictures, I'd never be able to live it down if she showed them to the school! Especially since I was pretty much naked at the moment!

As if to answer my questions, Rin began to stir. She popped one eye open and suddenly saw my face.

"Um... Rin?"

Rin yawned and looked up at me. "Yes?"

"Whatever you do, do not look down."

She looked down. _Uh oh. Here it comes._ Her face immediately flushed wth embarrassment. "Errrr... Sorry...?" she began to say, averting my gaze.

"I swear, I didn't do it. I'm really sorry, Rin. It will not happen again, I promise," I told her, scared. What would she do?

"It's..." she mumbled something inaudible.

"Hm?"

"I was just saying it's okay... and... that it was my fault..." she looked away, but I could feel the heat in the room rising.

"Oh, Rin?"

"Mm?

"Ii's okay. It was totally all me,"I confessed timidly and quietly.

"Oh, ok... " Rin replied hesitantly. Her cheeks were tomato red by now.

If I looked in a mirror, I'm sure my cheeks would have been just as hot.

I trotted over to my room and slipped on a new pair of boxers.

An awkward silence settled over us. I pulled her into a hug, apologizing quietly to her once again. And then we kinda laughed about it and returned to Rin's bed. What a weird morning. We forgot about it as soon as we let sleep overtake us. And I learned not to be lazy anymore.

And to not think about my sister in that disturbing way!

Rin was still awake, eyes open, staring innocently at me. Was I in love with Rin?

I touched her lightly on the shoulder. "I love you," I whispered to her, testing her.

"Me, too!" she said and smiled sweetly.

"No, Rin... not in that way..."

"No, I do mean in the way you're talking about," she replied seriously and firmly. "I know what you mean, Len."

I blinked twice. Did she really mean that? I was doubtful. And my suspicion turned out to be right.

"Ha! Len, did you really just say that, or were you just practicing for our new video, Spice? Ha ha ha!" Rin laughed between sentences teasingly, grinning wildly. She was holding her stomach in and rolling around her bed with hysterical laughter, messing up the blankets.

"Of course I did! What else, huh? I mean, isn't it gross for us to like each other? We're twins, after all! And you're the older one, too!" I pretended to laugh and joke, but my insides were burning up in embarrassment and shame. I felt disappointed that Rin's feelings for me in that way were not real, though. I couldn't help it. I faked hysterical laughter, clutching onto my sides and rolling around with Rin.

We were both rolling around and laughing uncontrollably, giggling, and holding ourselves together. For a little while, it was fun. Then, Rin's face bumped into mine and our lips pressed against each other, her rolling onto me suddenly. I was so surprised, I couldn't move!

My eyes were wide open in shock, and I was frozen in place. Rin? It seemed like she was kind of enjoying it, and her eyes were closed. What was happening here?

I caught her trying to slip her tongue into my mouth, and opened my eyes wider. Also, even though Rin was 10 pounds lighter than me, I pretty much couldn't move. What was she doing?

I tongue-fought her tongue out of my mouth and pulled away, I ran out her room, into my room, and locked the door shut, jumping onto my bed and covering my head with my pillow. What had just happened? I liked it, yes, but what did Rin just do? Did she purposely plan the whole thing or did she seriously not know what was going to happen? Did Rin want this? Did she like this?

It was five in the morning. I had run out of Rin's room 10 minutes ago.

Was Rin still awake? I crept over silently to her room and pushed the door open slowly. It was dark and quiet. _Too _quiet. Where was Rin?

I stepped into the room. Suddenly, Rin jumped out at me and hugged me, and pounced on me. I landed on her bed and was extremely surprised, heart beating wildly.

"Len?" she looked at me curiously with innocent eyes.

"Yeah, Rin?"

"What just happened ten minutes ago? Because I did not plan that," she said plainly. "And I was _not_ trying to slip my tongue into your mouth, so you didn't need to tongue-wrestle with me! I was just kinda paralyzed and gravity took its course! So... I couldn't move my tongue. And.. I closed my eyes because I didn't want to see your expression," Rin explained firmly.

"At least we got in some practice! That's the bright side!" I exclaimed jokingly. I smiled goofily at Rin and noogied her. "Come on, wasn't it kinda funny?"

"Yeah, it was funny. We practiced by accident!" Rin said, brightening up. "Well, we should get dressed for school. Let's go."

Before leaving, I said to Rin," Hey, sis! Wanna help me get dressed?" I grinned at her shocked expression.

"..."

"Okay, then," I replied to her and began to take off my boxers jokingly.

"Ahh! No! Not ever! No way, Len! Go somewhere else!" she shielded her eyes and looked away.

"Then would you like to watch me change?" I offered. It _was_ a joke, after all.

"Len, no thanks. I've already seen all of you this morning and I have absolutely no desire to see you like that again. Except for when we practice for Spice, I am not tolerating seeing... eeeeek!" she screamed like she was going to die.

"What... Rin, what in banana smoothies is going on...? ...ohhh...m-my bananas are showing!" I looked down and saw my boxers were still on. Was Rin still_ that_ sensitive about seeing me in my boxers? "Oh...um...whups...I-I'll be g-going now..." I dashed towards my room and shut the door. Wow, what a crazy night and morning!

Who knew what in the world of banana smoothies would be next? I hope Rin won't run to Kaito because of this! This mission to keep Rin close to me was not going well! One thing was for sure; never sleep next to Rin until she doesn't sleep-pull off anybody's pants anymore. Wow! And I am _so not _into twincest!


	2. It's a Strange World

**Chapter 2**

**It's a Strange World**

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**A/N: Just humor, folks! There's no twincest in this story, FYI. Noncest story here, folks! ;)**

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**Rin's POV:**

Len's been quite weird lately. He's been way too overprotective. And I'm not about to let him get in the way of me and Kaito!

Kaito sure is nice and kind to me. Sometimes I feel like he's the only one who listens to me besides my bestie, Miku. Len's so bothersome sometimes and never wants to listen to me. So whenever I go to the store to pick up a few things for dinner, if I ever bump into Kaito, we go to the nearby cafe and tke a seat to chat once in a while. He even buys me some orange-flavored ice cream! And he eats any flavor because he loves ice cream!

Not to mention Kaito's the hottest guy teacher in school. But I have no chance with him. He's a teacher, smart and all, and I know nothing! And the way Len shoots daggers at Kaito! If looks could kill, Kaito'd be dead by now!

Another good thing about Kaito is that he lets me call him Kaito! His first name! And I'm the only student in class that gets that privilege! Hooray!

As Len and I walk to school, I deliberately avoid his gaze.

"Something bothering you, Rin?"

"Nope."

"You seem troubled."

"Nah, I'm fine. I just am kinda sleepy, that's all. After your last fainting episode last night, I had to figure it out myself."

"Well, no need, sis. I corrected your work for you while you were in the shower this morning." Len grinned at me goofily.

"Huh? You mean... you...you did it for me?" I inquired, surprised.

"Yup." Len nodded.

Len usually would never be this nice! He never even broke the rules!

"Thanks, Len. I really couldn't do it myself. Honestly, how are we going to use this in real life if we're becoming singers?" I asked him curiously.

He replied lamely,"Oh, I don't know." Just as Len said that, we arrived at school.

We split up. "Bye, Len."

"Bye, Rin. Off to Kaito's classroom, huh?" There was something different in his voice. Jealousy? Hate? I shrugged mentally.

"Yeah. Well, bye!" I cheerfully exclaimed, smiling at him.

Len, walked away, muttering something about "ice cream" and "sister-nabbing".

I could hear the chatter as I walked in the room, thirty minutes early, as usual. I took a seat down right next to my bestie, Miku.

She always looked good in her uniform, no matter what. In other words, she was the "diva" of our class, and the "queen of fashion."

"So...you seem tired today." She said this as I plopped down my backpack.

"Yeah. Len was helping me with homework last night and fainted when I mentioned the term 'calculus'. I had to stay up late and do the rest myself. Long night."

"Strange...Len usually is so good at math."

"He is. Just not me."

"Oh, okay then."

I looked over my homework. All the answers were written neatly in my usual handwriting, but I knew it was Len's. He could mimic anybody's handwriting after a little practice. _Oh, Len, you. What would I do without you?_

The bell rang. Kaito walked in just then, late and panting heavily. It looked like he'd run 10 miles here, even though he only lived half a mile away from school. What had happened?

"Sorry I'm late, class. I had to do something really quickly. I made it. Time to take roll," he said between gasping. Kaito sure looked pooped!

Chemistry passed in a blur, and so did math, with Len constantly falling asleep, of course. At lunch, I grabbed my _bento_ and sat down next to Miku again.

As I was about to say something to her, Len scooted his desk next to mine and said,"I need to meet with you really quick after clubs today. I have something to tell you." He grinned like it was the best thing in the world that he was going to share with me.

Miku eyed him suspiciously. "I don't like that look on his face. That means something's going to happen, and I don't think it's something good." She pondered this for a moment.

Miku paid attention to my rather dazed state the entire time and told me," I'll tail you after clubs. I want to see what Len will say. If he does anything, I'll be there. I've got your back."

"Okay. Sure. Thanks."

"No problem, Rin. I'll make sure he doesn't try anything. That look on his face isn't good news."

"You know, usually, big sisters are able to keep theirs brothers under control. Also, they should be the ones to protect their little brothers, not the other way around. But I guess that's different when your little brother is bossy, overprotective, and treats you like a little girl. How strange is that?"

"Hm... I guess because he's taller and he does look more physically mature..."

"Maybe, but I'm honest, he's not mentally mature at all."

"I agree."

We finished our lunches and I put away my _bento_, putting it away. I zoomed through the rest of the day at top speed, getting all my work done quickly and as the next bell rung, activities started. After those ended as well, I trotted over to Len, who was waiting for me patiently outside school.

"So...what is it you wanted to tell me?"

"Okay, this sure is news, but I truthfully have no clue whether you'll like it or not, so...brace yourself. We...we...we're not...blood-related."

I pinched my cheeks. "Can you say that again? I think I didn't hear correctly." _What_ exactly had Len just said?

"We're...not...blood...related. Period."

I knew Miku was trying to listen to us somewhere in the bushes, so I made Len repeat again. "WHAT?"

"WE...ARE...NOT...BLOOD-RELATED..." he repeated for the final time.

"So..you mean...we're not siblings?"

"Nope."

"Oh." I know, it was a lame response. What was I supposed to say to _that?_

"Auntie Luka decided to break out the truth to me on the phone today. Then, she sent me an email of our birth certificate copies and our adoption documents. We're orphans. We were adopted by Auntie Luka."

"So.. we're not siblings, we're orphans, and Auntie Luka is our foster mother?"

"Right."

"Well, now that that's clear, I know. Surprising, though, huh? We look so alike. Same stature, hair color, skin color, eye color, similar height, and everything."

"I know, huh?"

"I'm still going to live with you, though. Secretly, I'm scared of living alone."

"And you know what?"

"What?"

"You're not my older sister. I'm not your real brother, anyway. But I'm still older."

"Oh. Then I guess it's up to you to protect me, huh?"

"Yep. And when Auntie Luka adopted us, she picked our last name because we had similar voices and she couldn't tell us apart as babies."

"Oh, well, that explains why we grew up to look so similar."

"Yeah. She picked us to be foster twins, if you know what I mean."

"Well, I'm still calling you bro, since we are still foster siblings anyway."

"Sure, sis. Let's go home."

"Okay." I took Len's hand and walked home with him, looking back once more to see Miku gesturing to her ear "call me". She made a phone signal. I nodded once and continued to trot home. I somehow felt like a different person now. Like Len was a different person to me now, I felt like a new person. Would Len treat me differently now that he realized who we really were? I didn't know, but I did know one thing: I would find out soon.

It's a strange world.

**Len's POV:**

_I totally have this one in the bag! Banana boy rules the day! Yeah! _

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**I will update ASAP. Do not worry. Anyways, I hope you enjoyed this! :)**

**And please review! I appreciate all feedback! :D**

**And for those who requested HakuXKaito, don't worry. I'll get there soon enough. ;)**


	3. Losing Can Be Good

**Losing is Hard On You Sometimes...But It Can Also Be Good**

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**A/N: And this tells what happened in between, during the day from Chapter 2. Hope you enjoy. ;D**

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**Chapter 3**

**Kaito's POV:**

I don't really mind losing bets. Losing usually doesn't bother me, since I'm a good sport and all. And you _do_ learn from losing, even as a teacher. I _definitely_ learned something from this loss, for sure.

I was playing chess with Haku, my fellow coworker in school. I bet her that if I won, she would do anything I asked her to do. If I lost, I told her I would travel on foot for a whole day, no matter where I needed to go.

And...you guessed it. I lost. And guess where I was? At Haku's house, more than 19 miles away from school. I had to run all the way home, which lay in the complete opposite direction of Haku's house, being a good almost 20 miles away from hers. That was the worst bet I had ever made.

I got home at 1:34 am in the morning. That was a long run. I went upstairs, got home, and changed slowly after taking a quick shower. I brushed my teeth and plopped down on my bed, exhausted, falling asleep immediately. I finally got my rest.

I blinked once, then twice. I groaned sleepily. What was the time? Morning sunlight streamed in through my bedroom window. I glanced at my clock. Mother of ice cream, I was late for work! And I'd be even more late, since I had to walk to school!

I jumped out of bed and did everything as fast as I could, grabbing my things, an ice cream breakfast, and scrambled out the door, locking it shut. I ran and ran all the way while somewhat trying to enjoy my ice cream. Wow. Everything was a lot harder without cars.

I finally got to school, rushing into the doors and checking in, then scaling the hallways to my classroom. I was 20 minutes late!

"Sorry I'm late, class. I had to do something really quickly. I made it. Time to take roll." I was panting heavily. At least half a mile's run wasn't as hard as 20 miles.

_Oh, Haku. I'm winning next time. And you will be the one to know how this feels next time, _I playfully thought.

I finished taking roll and began today's lesson. As I was teaching, I saw Rin, my brightest student, scribbling down note after note in her notebook. What a hard worker! I admired her diligence. And I believe Len was the same way in Haku's class, too.

Len. I knew just how much he despised me. But why? Was I too close to Rin for his taste? If his looks could kill, I'd have been dead long ago. But he seemed like such a nice boy!

The bell rang, and I dismissed my class, laying down my book. Whew. I was still sweating, but better. I ruffled my blue hair and drank some water. Maybe some water would help.

When lunch came, I went over to Haku and politely demanded a rematch.

"I would like a rematch, please."

"Oh, really?"

"That's right."

"I'll bet I'll still be the winner this time. If I'm not, you can ask me for anything. If I am, then this time, I will ask anything of you."

"Deal, then."

"I'll be eating and playing."

"I as well."

We started off our chess game. This time, I conquered her!

"What do you want from me now?" Haku asked grudgingly. She sighed, defeated.

"Hmmm..." I started. What _did I want from her? _Why, a kiss, of course! Haku had been my childhood crush! How could I pass up this opportunity when I had it here, for something else?

"Come on, we don't have all day."

"Okay, okay..." She could be a _little_ impatient, but that didn't stop me from liking her. Her features, her personality, full of just the right amount of toughness, her outstanding hair, and how kind she was. If you looked into her, it was there. Haku was just really playful and funny.

I walked over to the door and quietly closed it, looking back at her.

"What are you doing?"

"Just taking a precaution."

"For what?"

I stepped over to her.

"Well..."

"I asked you a question, Kaito! You need to answer-" and she was muffled.

I kissed her, stopping her from talking. _This sure is a moment to remember. If I don't treasure this memory, and Haku doesn't like me, I'll never get a chance for this again! _

And my heart burst with happiness when I thought I could feel her kiss back. It was a long kiss, really. I was disappointed when I had to pull away.

"And that is what I wanted from you."

I raised an eyebrow at her speechless expression, surprised. She was usually so tough, but never speechless.

"Well, lunch is almost over. I'll need to get back to my classroom," I called to her while opening to door silently.

I stepped outside and closed to door once more, striding back to my classroom in a daze.

_Well, you got what you wanted. But what's going to happen now? What now? _a voice in my head echoed. My conscience, of course. I didn't know what, but had a feeling that losing just led to something new. Something was going to begin. I knew it. But what?

Only the god of my ice cream life knew. And I had a feeling I was in for a lot. Soon.

**Len's POV:**

I don't like being snoopy, but during lunch, I think I saw through Ms. Yowane's window that she and Mr. Shion were...kissing? Well, at least I know my sweet Rin is safe now.

Kaito's not trying to steal her from me? Wow, I guess I was dead wrong!

Maybe Kaito's not so bad after all. I stepped back from the window, and using my phone, I took 5 pictures of this.

_Just wait till Rin sees this. Just wait. _

_Rin is sure in for one big surprise!_

Actually, I kinda saw it coming. Kaito doesn't like Rin. Another point for banana boy!

"Banana boy, what are you doing in the bushes?" a voice called as I stepped out of the bushes.

I turned to see Rin. "Um...I was..." I picked up a leaf. "Collecting leaf samples because I wanted to compare them to banana leaves?" I finished.

"Oh, all right. I don't believe you one bit, we have to get back to class, bro. Lunch isn't time to be snooping around. Okay?"

"Sure, Rin. Let's go inside. I'm full now, but you can have my orange."

"Sure!" Rin said happily as I escorted her inside.

She ruffled my hair affectionately. I gave her my orange, and she was on her way, back to class.

"Bye, Rin! Later!" I called to her while waving.

"See you after school, Len!" Rin replied while skipping down the hallway, peeling and eating her orange.

"See you after school indeed..." I said quietly to myself while chuckling. "See you after school indeed..."

_Oh, Rin. You're in for a surprise after school. _

I have a feeling she won't feel too bad about it, though. I trot back to class.

After all, it's not like she lost anything. Rin's not the loser in this one. Nobody is. She's actually a winner. After Rin sees those pictures, I bet she's gonna want some of this... I gestured to myself while thinking about it all. I smiled to myself, contented.

_With these photos, banana boy has hit the jackpot! _

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**The next update will probably come pretty quickly. I can't promise anything, but check tomorrow. Thanks. And if you see anything in my story here that you want to tell me about, feel free to review. I appreciate and politely welcome all feedback. Thank you all! :)**


	4. Ms Tough? Not Anymore

**Ms. Tough? Not Anymore...**

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**Chapter 4**

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**A/N: I hope you're enjoying this so far. Sorry it took so long to update. I was caught up in something, but here it is! :D**

**Haku's POV:**

Today was one of the most surprising days of my life! What happened, you might say, that made tough Haku so surprised? I know, I'm usually not easy to surprise or impress, but I guess there is one person who can do that: my fellow childhood friend and coworker, Kaito Shion.

Kaito sure is one unpredictable guy! And I guess he has been ever since, well, always. I secretly think he's the coolest guy around. He can be so sophistocated, understanding, and downright cool but exciting at the same time! And... I like him. Ever since childhood, of course.

I _still_ like him, but that doesn't mean I'm going to admit that. I will never bow down to anyone! I am tough and I have it all layered, but under all that, I have a soft inside. I can be sad, but won't show it. I think I _am_ a bit impatient, but not enough to be annoying.

So this is what happened today.

I was paying a chess game with Kaito...when I _lost!_ I don't just lose at chess! I've always won over Kaito ever since we first started playing it! I've _always_ been the winner!

I cannot lose! But, it happened.

"What do you want from me now?" I sighed, defeated. How could I lose?

"Hmmm..."

"Come on, we don't have all day." What was that look on his face?

"Okay, okay..."

He then walked over to the door and shut it closed silently, not making a sound. What was Kaito doing?

"What are you doing?"

"Just taking a precaution." A _precaution?_ For what?

"For what?" I asked suspiciously. He stepped towards me.

"Well..." Kaito paused for a moment. For _too_ long.

"I asked you a question, Kaito!" Why was he so close to me? Oh, no, was he going to get me back for that bet we made yesterday? "You need to answer-" and I was muffled.

I instantly was alarmed at feeling soft lips press onto mine. Kaito was... _kissing me_! He was kissing me! Why _was_ he kssing me? Of all the other good people to kiss, why choose me? Why?

But I didn't care anymore. It was a long kiss, and it was sweet, too. It felt so right to be doing this with him, here, with him.

My heart beat wildly and I could feel the heat in the room rising. But why did I also feel as if someone was watching us, too? I felt eyes on my back, which was facing the window. I kissed Kaito back immediately.

Kaito finally pulled away, gasping for breath.

"And that is what I wanted from you." I was so surprised! I was speechless!

I'm never speechless! I didn't feel like Ms. Tough Haku anymore. I felt like regular, normal old Haku with no tough layers. I stood there, frozen in shock.

Kaito had impressed me and wowed me. He stepped outside, closing the door, looking at me once more before exiting the room. Kaito had a calm look on his face. He probably didn't know it and thought he was a big clumsy fool, but really, Kaito was cool. _Really awesome._ I touched my lips in a daze.

The memory was bliss. If he never kissed me again, I might as well treasure this one. It was just then that I remembered how I'd felt eyes on m back earlier.

I looked outside. Nobody was to be seen, but I could see that there were recent footprints made in the dirt, not too long ago, according to my math teacher-worthy calculations. But I didn't care. If it was a student, go ahead and let them find out. I was in love.

Was I Ms. Tough now? Not anymore... Kaito had changed me. _I should be nicer. I guess I am a bit harsh at times._ I cleaned up my chess set and put it away. Lunch would end soon, and I had to be ready. I felt that something was going to happen, but I didn't know what. I felt it. Something was going to happen, even though I didn't know what. But I had to be ready for that, too, even if I wasn't so tough anymore.

**Rin's POV**:

After school today, Len came over to me.

"Hey there, Rinny."

"What's with the funny name-calling, Len?" I asked curiously.

"Oh, something that you might be interested in."

"What is it?"

"We should go home, first."

"Why?"

"It's something private that I found out. Come on, let's go."

Len and I walked home together slowly. What was he going to tell me? I was curious.

_Len, you have definitely got me interested._ Why was Len treating me so much more differently than before? Ever since he told me we weren't siblings, which was yesterday, he was different somehow.

Was it that whenever he was alone with me, his face turned red? It always looked like he was blushing and nervous when we were together and alone.

Was it that whenever I was around him, it seemed like he was more well-behaved? Nah.

When Len and I finally reached home, we stepped inside and had our afternoon fruits. A banana for Len and a small orange for me.

I slid my pack off and placed it neatly to the side of my room wall and went to our living room. I sat myself dwn on the couch while enjoying my juicy sweet orange.

"So," I started between eating some orange slices," what is it that you were going to tell me?"

"Well..." he was eating his banana," I have something to show you.

While enjoying his banana, he dug through his backpack and found his phone.

I was fooling around while waiting, stuffing a slice of orange in my mouth and smiling so it looked like I had an orange slice-filled mouth. I sure was goofy!

"Oh, Rin, you're 14, not 4. Stop fooling around with that ornage slice."

"Mmmph... Mmmm...mmm...mmm...mhmmm..." I grunted at him funnily, grinning with the orange in my mouth. It probably looked gross, but who could judge me? I was just being myself.

Len pressed a few buttons on his phone and showed the sceen to me.

I could easily make out the people in the image: Kaito and Ms. Yowane. What they were doing blew me away. They... were... KISSING!

I was sad and surprised a bit at the same time. I looked at Len and suddenly spit out my orange slice, which, unfortunately for Len, landed on his face with a _SPLAT_!

"Oh... uh... Rin?"

I grunted, still shocked at the images Len had shown me.

"You could've at least turned away..." Len peeled the orange slice off his face and it landed in the trash can with another splat.

"Sorry..." I replied to Len, still shocked. "It's okay, just don't do it again." Len smiled at me. _Oh, Len looked so cute like that! Wait, Rin. Did you just think that? Uh oh. What's happening to me, thinking Len is cute? What is going on? Len is my foster brother! Oh. FOSTER brother. So maybe I could... _ I couldn't finish the thought. That was way too disturbing. I shook off the thought.

"Here, let me wash your face for you. Let's go to the bathroom," I told Len. I walked Len over to the bathroom and got a small towel, rinsed it with cold water, and wiped my spit off Len's face.

"Ah, that's better. Remember next time to turn away whenever you want to spit something out, okay?" Len reminded me after splashing his face with more cold water. "And for me to forgive you for this, I ask of you one small thing."

"What is it?" I asked, ready to do just about anything.

"A kiss," Len responded, his face turning red immediately. It looked like he was mentally facepalming himself for saying that.

"What do you mean by that?" I inquired.

"I-I I...uh...mmm..." Len stuttered.

"Cheek, or lips, is what I mean," I explained.

"Cheeks, I mean, no! Uh...uh... l-lips! Lips! I mean-" I clamped my hand down over Len's mouth.

"Be clear and confident about your words, Len. I can barely understand you," I said to Len firmly.

Just then, he stepped closer to me. "Did you hear me? I said I would like a kiss."

"Oh. No biggie, then. We're not siblings anyway."

I kissed him lightly on the lips and said," There you go." It wasn't a biggie, right? But when I looked at his expression, he was blushing even more furiously than before. _What has gotten into you, Len?_ I mentally shrugged. It must be nothing. I thought of that kiss as just a favor. But it seemed like it meant much more to Len.

"Well," Len started suddenly, breaking the awkward silence that had settled between us," thanks for helping me clean my face, but I gotta do my homework now, so see you later, Rin. I'll be in my room." Len trotted briskly off to his room, shutting the door behind him with a click.

Well, _that_ was different. Since when does Len blush so much? Just then, I remembered how Len had shown me those images. I guess I'd already seen it coming. It wasn't a big problem. I could find someone else...like... Wait, what was I thinking? I am really gross sometimes!

_Oh, Rin, even the king of your orange life won't be able to wipe those thoughts from your mind!_ I sure am strange! I don't know what has gotten into me, liking Len in that way!

**Len's POV:**

I mentally facepalmed myself. Since when is it so hard, being around Rin? I bet I was blushing, too! Well, Rin knows not to get too close to that Kaito now. She's seen the images, and I'm going to be cool from now on! _Cool, Len! Cool and calm. Do not sweat 200 miles per hour when around Rin._

_But on the bright side, banana boy has gotten one step closer to his goal_! Honestly, I can't deny it. I like Rin. Good thing we're not siblings. Whew!

I finished all my homework in a flash and went over to Rin afterwards, telling her I'd help her with homework afterwards. We had some dinner, cleaned up, took turns using the bathroom, dressed into our pajamas, and brushed our teeth. I stepped into Rin's room to help her with homework as she was waiting, sitting at her desk, pondering the problems. "Okay, let's get started, Rin." I sighed and sat down in the chair next to her. _Okay, focus, Len. Focus. You can do this. _

I had to be patient. Rin would get all this in some time, ...right? _Oh, you wish, Len. You wish_, my conscience told me. Quiet down, conscience. You're being too loud. I can't concentrate. Yes, I wish. But can't it come true?

I started to explain to Rin the problems on her homework, but as much as she nodded and tried to understand, I could tell none of this was getting to her brain so far. Rin, I could see, was trying hard to absorb every word I said. But her brain just wouldn't work as well here than in chemistry class, when everybody could tell she understood everything. This was going to be harder than I thought.

Sometimes, she would doze off a bit and snap back to the present, so I could tell she really wasn't getting it. It would take a while. But I was diligent and patient. I had to be a good foster brother. A good example for my little foster sister. As much as I liked Rin, I did not particularly enjoy teaching her math, but then again, foster sibling obligations demanded it. And I also had to take good care of her.

Of course, if I ever needed help on anything, Rin had promised to help me, but I rarely needed help on anything at all, being independent. Because banana boy is strong enough on his own.

Oh, banana splits. This was going to be a _long_ night.


	5. A Change in Demeanor

**A Change in Demeanor**

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**Chapter 5**

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**A/N: Okay, here it is! I'm really busy this week so far, so I'm not sure how long it'll take for me to update the next one. Sorry for the short chapters. This is my longest chapter so far. I'm working on it. It might take a while for the next one, but I'm not a diviner, so I'm not completely sure. Also, I can understand English, Chinese, Vietnamese, and Spanish. Feel free to post reviews in those languages, since I'm multilingual. Any other is okay, too. :D For now, enjoy! :)**

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**Len's POV:**

I awoke to hear my alarm ringing on my nightstand. I hit the snooze button forcefully and pulled my pillow over my head, groaning sleepily and sighing. I was tired! Couldn't a nice guy like me get a little more rest after spending the whole night helping his foster sister with math homework nonstop? "Len! Time to wake up! Or I'm walking to school without you!" a voice called from behind my door. _Rin. Oh, no! I couldn't let her walk to school alone! What if something happened to her?_ I immediately sprang out of bed. Everything slowly came into focus. Sunlight poured in through the window in my room, and my room was a mess, once again. I ignored the mess for now and rummaged through my closet, pulling out my uniform, which was one of the only set of clothes that hadn't been wrinkled in my room so far out of my entire wardrobe, fortunately.

I quickly slipped into it after showering and brushing my teeth in 5 minutes, and picked up my backpack, already filled with all the things I needed for school. I opened the door, stepped outside, and closed it, making my way downstairs to the kitchen. It was then that I detected a burning smell coming from the kitchen. Rin again, probably trying to unsuccessfully prepare breakfast for the two of us. I mentally chuckled at that, and entered the kitchen. What I saw was a sight different from what I expected.

I had expected Rin to be half-blushing, half-ashamed, standing next to another one of her overcooked creations. Instead, I didn't see that. In fact, nothing was even _burning._ Rin was sitting casually down at one of the table chairs, eating a perfectly made breakfast, and one plate was for her, and the other was for me. I guess I'd just imagined the smell. Of course, Rin can't always fail at cooking, can she?

"Why don't you join me?" Rin coolly offered me.

"O-of course," I replied, taken aback at her coolness and calmness. I took a seat at the chair beside her and gazed at the plate, not saying another word.

"It's for you, go ahead."

"How did you... did you make this?" I inquired, suspiciously. It looked to good to be hers.

"I made this all by myself."

"But.. usually you end up with a burnt breakfast... y-you know-" I stammered.

"Are you saying nobody can improve at anything?" Rin interrupted me suddenly.

"No. I was just... surprised at how much you improved," I responded, taken aback at her sudden change in demeanor and manner.

"Oh, Len... you don't even know it it's good yet," she chuckled suddenly. "Give it a try." So, had she been acting?

I tried her breakfast. It really _did_ taste good. How did she do it? If Rin is improving like this suddenly, does this mean she'll be better in math, too? "I like it," I told Rin. "It tastes pretty good. Maybe it's even better than what I can do..." I smiled at her, finishing off the rest. After finishing breakfast, Rin had some orange juice and I had a banana smoothie, and we washed the dishes together, putting them away to dry. Afterwards, Rin and I began our walk to school.

Arriving at school, Miku, Rin's best friend, dragged her away and began to chatter and giggle with her, walking down the hall away from me. I shrugged and made my way to my first class, math with boring Ms. Yowane once again, the ultimate droning machine of the school. She could be really challenging, too. I was always at least 30 minutes early. That was pretty early. I entered the classroom and took my seat down at the front of the class, pulling out my neat and finished homework. It was easy enough to earn an A in this class, anyway.

Minutes later, Miku and Rin walked through the door, Miku still clinging to her like a hairball, giggling and whispering words into Rin's ear. What was with the whispering? Miku usually was really loud and always spoke at a volume high enough for everyone to hear. Rin, face looking sick, took her seat near me and Miku dropped herself down on the seat next to Rin. I had a feeling Miku was telling Rin the things that made her face look sick like this.

I got up out of my seat and approached Miku's desk, standing over her. "What are you saying to Rin? Why does she look so sick?" I was worried for Rin. If anybody said anything that made her uncomfortable, I would make sure Rin was alright.

"Oh, wouldn't _you _like to know." Miku flashed one of her annoying girlish grins at me and turned her back to my face, whispering a few more words in Rin's ear. Rin's face turned a deep shade of red.

"Miku, whatever you're doing to make Rin feel uncomfortable, stop it," I told Miku. _What _was with the giggling today? And the_ whispering?_

"Yeah, whatever." Miku continued to ignore me and whispered to Rin some more. Gee, this was annoying. Even more annoying than buying a bunch of bananas and not being able to peel them or eat them!

At that point, Rin muttered to Miku in a voice inaudible to me something that silenced Miku for a few moments. Then she burst out laughing and faced me.

"What is going on, Miku?" I asked suspiciously again, eyeing her like she was a criminal.

"Oh, you'll find out soon enough, banana boy. Soon enough," Miku replied with a sly smile.

Rin said to me in a low voice," Oh, Len. Don't listen to her. She's been weird lately, you know." She gave me a reassuring wink. "I'm fine. You don't need to worry."

I headed back to my seat, half disappointed that I wasn't able to find out exactly what Miku had been telling Rin about. _Oh, one way or another, I'll find out soon. And I have a feeling it's got something to do with me. Very much about banana boy. Very much._

**Rin's POV:**

I felt sick today for the rest of day after Miku had rushed up to me in the morning. She started asking me about our relationship status after Len and I found out we weren't really siblings. What in the orange was _that_ supposed to mean? I asked her just that, and she xplained very carefully to me about her so-called "ideas." A little _too_ carefully. And I didn't like it. Miku told me I should try to make a move... on _LEN!_ My own foster brother! It was weird enough, living with someone not blood-related to me. Now, having my own best friend tell me I should try to date the boy that I've been living for years with?

It wasn't that I wasn't famiiar enough with Len. I was pretty comfortable with him. I was close to Len, in other words. Now, taking that perspective, ripping it up, and building a new way of looking at Len? That was not right. _Especially since it was in a romantic way._ That didn't feel right. Miku shot countless questions at me.

"Do you like him?"

"How is he treating you at home?"

"Has he tried to make a move yet?"

"Do you think he likes you?"

"Does he treat you better?"

"Do you want him to like you?"

"Do you think he's cute?"

"I think you two would make a great couple!"

_Okay, now that was just overload. Crossing the line!_ Miku was supportive and friendly, but could be nosy sometimes, too.

And then when Len came over to help me, Miku just whispered to me," Oooooh! He's here! Aren't you going to tell him? You know you want to!" She giggled way too much, too, sometimes. To shush her, I muttered back to Miku in a hushed voice low enough so that Len couldn't hear," Oh, Miku. This isn't your business and you know it." I quietly pleaded to her," Dn't try to force us into a couple. We should have the choice. And we choose not to. I don't like Len, never have, and never will." It was a complete lie, and I knew it. But I was so ashamed at having these feelings that I couldn't admit them to anybody, not even Miku. Of course, not Len, either. What if he didn't feel how I felt?

Miku then told Len,"Oh, you'll find out soon enough, banana boy. Soon enough." She smiled mysteriously at me, and mischieviously at Len, and continued laughing her leeks off. _Oh, Len would definitely find out soon enough. It won't be long before he finds out about how I feel. And how he feels, too._

I reassured Len with a few words and he hung his head, disappointed, obviously because he didn't know what was going on. Poor Len. He was at the center of all this. Did he even know?

Miku's strange demeanor was definitely affecting Len and I today. I glanced at all the other students in the classroom. Utatane Piko, Akita Neru, Kasane Teto, Kamui Gakupo, and a few others I couldn't recall names of. Their lives must all be carefree and worryless compared to mine. I rarely talked to any of them, but I could tell they were all having a good time, hanging out with each other. Why couldn't I be comfortable around Len anymore? I fidgeted and twitched nervously all the time around him. And my heart was always thumping wildly...

I pulled out my homework, placed it on my desk, and my thoughts ceased. As I waited the last few minutes for Ms. Yowane to arrive, I turned and gazed at Len. Hm. Sleeping again, eh, Len? Oh, I wish I was better at math so he wouldn't be sleeping all the time. Why was I so bad at math? I couldn't get the simplest words at all! I mentally promised myself I'd get math someday soon when I could so Len could get his well-deserved rest. Oh, sorry, Len.

Len's head was laid down on his desk, and he was breathing softly, not making much noise. I was so glad Len wasn't a snoring sleeper. Snoring sleepers were really annoying and hard to sleep and live with for me! Len's eyes were gently closed, twitching a bit and flickering at times. His mouth was opened slghtly, but he wasn't drooling. Thank oranges he wasn't a drooler, either! Not that I had anything against droolers, but I just really didn't want to sleep next to a foster brother who drooled on my face while sleeping. Now that sure was gross! And... Len looked adorable that way! Uh oh. Was I thinking i again? I tried to erase the thought from my mind. He was my foster bro, nothing more. Or could he be? My thoughts were interrupted as Miku tapped my shoulder, telling me Ms. Yowane had arrived at last. I turned around and sat myself properly in my chair.

The first bell rang 1 minute after Ms. Yowane had arrived at the classroom. She smiled brightly at everyone. Smiling brightly? Ms. Yowane was usually so drab and dull! She never even smiled! She began to organize her papers and took roll with a rather cheery voice. What had gotten into Ms. Yowane? Had she been struck by the god of happiness or something? Was she... oh, dare I say it? I'd seen this in movies before. This happened to the person all the time when they... oh, dear oranges, was Ms. Yowane finally in_love? _

And that brought me back to the memory of Len's images! Of course she was in love! How could I have forgotten? So _that_ was what was causing Ms. Yowane's sudden change in demeanor from boring to bright. Could love do that? Make me brighter? Nicer? Maybe I should let the feelings flow instead of blocking them out!

I had almost forgotten! "Len! Len!" I shook him awake immediately.

He groaned. "Hm? I really... Oh, is that you, Rin?" His head shot up right after ealizing it was me. "Yes?"

"Oh, you're going to want to see this. Ms. Yowane's gone bananas!" Len grinned at my use of the word _bananas_. He looked at Ms. Yowane carefully.

"Yep, she's gone bonkers! That kiss yesterday must have really made her crazy!"

"I know, huh?" I cringed when Len said _kiss._ I wasn't particularly used to Len using those romance-related words. I was still a bit sensitive.

Ms. Yowane set up a fun, exciting activity that was really awesome and eduational, too! It was great! And... I finally got what she was saying in math! Hooray! I only had small issues now! Yippee! Len could finally get his well-deserved sleep!

What was weird was that when an unencouraged student flung a paper airplane at her face and it hit her square in the nose, she didn't ake it as an act of war or ignorance. Ms. Yowane picked up the plane.

"Interesting," she exclaimed while examining the plane. Then, she made a speech about what a great experiment it was for math and a bunch of calculations she'd made in her head about the distance the plane travelled, the length, the time it took to get to her, and the design of the plane. It seemed like a science and math cooperative activity to her, so she stopped the lesson and paired us up to work on pretty much folding different paper airplanes and throwing them in random directions around the room. She then invited Kaito over, who was free at the moment, and who also knew physics as well as biology, so we had him in class, too.

It was a whole different day and a really new experience for us. I paired up with Len, chatting with him while folding planes about how I'd managed to make breakfast this morning. When class ended, I was sad, and a lot of students were too, since they had enjoyed the activity in class today. Now that had been one great class. I wondered what could change next? Who knew? The only way I'd know would be if the orange heavens informed me of what was to come soon. Oh, only time would tell.

I was in love with Len. I admitted to myself once again mentally. I admitted it firmly to myself. Yes, it was the honest truth. And someday soon, I would have to reveal that honest truth to Len, as well. But when?

**Kaito's POV:**

Ice cream goodness, today was really great! I spent the entire day with Haku, helping her with her wonderful teaching activity, having lunch with her, and challenging her to another friendly chess match after school, no bets this time. How could this day get any better? Well, I stayed over late at night with Haku today playing chess, and she asked me to sleep over anyway, since she had driven me over to her house! I slept on a spare bed in her room, and could see Haku the whole time while she was sleeping.

It was a dream come true! What a great day! That's how it got better!

When I awoke the next morning, she drove me to my home, I changed, got ready, and jumped back on her car. Haku drove us back to school early, to begin work, and the cycle kept on for a few more days. We became even closer t each other after then, and had a great time with each other, going to cafes and just chatting and eating. We stayed over with each other to help each other out with some of the massive workload poured on us, and spent a lot of time together. I had never felt so comfortable with Haku! This is sure turning into a good bond! It's a wonderful experience, having a good, close friend with you!

I knew this strong tie would never fade again. In fact, it would tighten, bringing us closer and closer than ever! People need a good relationship like this! Haku made me smile every day, and I made sure she had a great time with me every day, joking around with her. I'd never seen her so bright before!

Maybe this would even turn out to be more than just a friendship and grow into that strong tie that everyone knows of, slowly..._love._ Could it ever be so? By lords of ice cream, could it really happen?

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**I appreciate and welcome feedback! Go ahead and review! :)**


	6. Bonds

**Chapter 6**

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**Bonds**

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**A/N: I'm going to try tweaking the amount I write up a bit, since I know my chapters are short. Since I'm writing more, it might take a bit more time for updates to come up. Sorry, folks! Well, at least you know you're getting the best I can do! You're getting the final, fixed, rechecked product! I check spelling and grammar in my writing, though there might be little slips sometimes. Sorry it took so long to update! :)**

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**Haku's POV:**

Kaito's been so sweet to me so far! My own crush, becoming my close friend. Wasn't that great? I always had him by my side, and sometimes when I dragged him on shopping trips at the mall, I made him carry all my bags, but in the end, bought extra-large sundaes for him. Oh, I knew how heavy those bags were. I'd carried them myself before.

Kaito was sweating buckets when we stopped at the food court to take a rest. "Okay, Kaito. Stay here. I'm getting a sundae for you, okay?"

"Okay." He was still panting.

"Watch my bags, too."

"Uh huh..." he clutched his chest and slumped over in his chair, gasping.

It seemed like he was suffocating. Was he okay? "Kaito, are you fine?"

Kaito dramatically clutched his stomach. "Need...ice...cream..." He made his "suffering" face.

Gee, how cute that was! Adorable! "Okay, Kaito, okay. I'll get your ice cream for you. It'll only be a minute."

"Mmmph..." he pretended to faint in his chair. Oh, Kaito!

"Watch my bags!" I called while trotting away, looking back at Kaito. He winked at me and gave me a thumbs up. Kaito smiled.

I went to the creamery and ordered two sundaes for the both of us, making Kaito's sundae the larger one. I paid for our ice creams and managed to carry Kaito's large ice cream all the way back without dropping anything, miraculously, and set them down on the table. I laid down our spoons and napkins.

"Kaito! Ice cream sundae is here!" I looked up to see an empty chair before me. Kaito was gone. Ooh, he was _really_ going to be in for it! Leaving me without a word! I grumbled to myself. "Kaitoooooooooo!" I yelled, but he wasn't around. Yep, he'd wandered off-again! This was the third time? Oh Kaito, where are you!? Your ice cream is melting!

**Kaito's POV:**

_Your ice cream is melting!_ I heard a voice call in my head. I didn't know how, but I'd always had a sixth sense for anything mentioned about my ice cream. And... that voice was Haku's voice! Did she already finish buying my ice cream? I stood wondering at the karaoke machine on sale. It was playing some songs. Just then, it started playing the melody of "Melt", sung by one of my very own students, Miku! But there was no one to sing along with it. _This will only take a moment! Haku shouldn't mind._

I made up my own parody and called it,"My Ice Cream Is Melting". Since it really was melting, of course. I sang pretty well, and some people stood and watched me, crying when I sung about my beautiful ice cream dropped on the ground. They grinned joyfully when my friend gave me her ice cream in the song, and clapped wildly when I finished.

Just after I finished, I saw Rin, Len, and Miku running past me really quickly in the mall, like somebody was chasing them. Their faces were frantic and they seemed terrified. What was going on? Ten seconds after the trio zoomed by me, Megurine Luka, Rin and Len's aunt, zipped past me with incredible speed. She seemed even more desperate than the trio! "Wait for me! Help!" she called to them, waving her arms.

And finally, with the speed and silence of a ninja, a purple blur whizzed past my sight. Gakupo. One of the older students. Purple hair, strong build, smart. And there he was, chasing Rin and Len's aunt again. He was in love with her! How fun that was! The aunt of his own best friends was his crush! She was quite young, of course. Only a teen, a couple of years older than Rin and Len.

Of course, she was their guardian, too. Luka's parents had adopted Rin and Len, and when they'd passed away, leaving her a company to run and a large sum of money, she took up responsibility as the eldest, posing as Rin and Len's aunt, but not really their foster mother, either. What a responsible, beautiful, and admirable young lady! She'd even skipped grades and finished school early with high marks in order to be able to run her company!

She had several degrees, one over 4 years! She'd taken the course when she was only a young teen! Luka was a great role model. And, she was a great crush, too! Gakupo had good taste, but only, the thing was, Luka didn't have good taste in boys. I sighed. Luka could be dense sometimes, as smart as she was. Luka was literally a genius compared to me. I was lost in thought as I wandered the mall.

Just then, a voice called my name. "Kaaaaaaaiiiiiiiiiiiiitooooooooooo!" Kaito! Get over here! You're getting it!" It was Haku, searching for me. I'd forgotten about my ice cream!

I rushed over to the table, gobbled up my ice cream, and sat down, relieved. That was one good ice cream!

"Kaito!" Haku yelled into my ear angrily, obviously annoyed with me for running off.

"Hm?"

"Where did you go?"

"Karaoke."

"Oh."

"Yep. Thanks for the ice cream, Haku. Shall we go?"

She was a bit confused at how cool I was. "Okay."

I carried all her bags to my car and put them in the trunk, slamming it closed afterwards. I climbed in with Haku, started the car, and we buckled our seat belts. "Kaito?"

"Yes?"

"I'm sorry I got angry."

"It's fine." I meant it. I liked her too much to be mad at her.

"I know I just have a really bad temper sometimes." Haku sounded genuine.

"And I guess to do tend to wander off at times, too."

"I know that, it's just that-"

"Shhhh. Don't say anything else. You're more than good enough for me," I interrupted. But then I quickly realized what I had just said and face palmed mentally. _How did that come out? Ugh!_ My face turned red, and I turned away to hide my blush.

"Wait, what?"

"I-I uh-uh..." I stammered nervously. Everything came out wrong! Ice cream, what was I supposed to say?

"What did you just say?" Haku inquired curiously.

I summoned up all my courage and mentally took a deep breath. Okay, Kaito. You can do this. I turned to Haku, determined. Oh, here it comes. I opened my mouth.

"Haku, what I mean is-you're a really nice friend. I know we've known each other since childhood, which is a long time. I've liked you-for all those years, keeping it to myself. And I would like to ask you now, Haku. Will you go out with me?" My face turned even more red. I fidgeted with my fingers. My car wasn't the best place to ask a girl out, but it was nice, I guess. And better now than never, right?

My question hung in the air for a long time. Then Haku said to me,"I'll think about it." Her tone was neutral. Was I safe? What would she say? I drove us to my house the rest of the way in silence, tense and sweaty. Haku was sleeping over tonight, since her home was far away, of course. When we got dressed for bed, Haku went over to my room.

"Haku, your room's down the hall."

"I know. I just wanted to say..." she smiled gently and walked over to me. Ice cream, she sure wore revealing pajamas!

"What was that?" I asked.

"Your question earlier? Yes, I will go out with you. I like you too. Now come here," she told me, still smiling.

I walked over to her and lightly embraced her. What a nice scent! She smelled great, but I couldn't name the smell. I smiled to myself. I looked down, and on impulse, I kissed her. I was kissing Haku again! Her lips were soft, so gentle and delicate! It was a wonderful sensation, and I was tingling all over! And just as quickly as it started, it ended swiftly. We pulled away from each other, and that night, Haku lay down beside me to sleep. I pulled the covers gently over her.

It was the second "lips" kiss I'd ever had in my life, which was surprising, especially for a handsome guy like me. I wasn't bragging-I really_ was_ handsome! I was the hottest male in school, besides Len and Gakupo, of course! Len was the hottest male, though. He didn't know it, but girls crushed on him all the time! They were too shy to confess, of course, but the dreamy stares girls gave him while he wasn't looking were aplenty. Ah, the clueless and poor, innocent Len! I'd even heard rumors that Rin and Len were dating, now that everyone knew they weren't really siblings! They were both adopted, of course. Foster siblings was the term I was searching for.

Teen drama, especially between Rin and Len, was building up! How interesting teens were! I didn't think I was _this_ interesting as a teenager, though. I guessed Rin and Len were just different from most typical teenagers. I thought this as I slowly drifted off to a good night's sleep, Haku lightly breathing next to me. I snuggled up next to her. Good thing I didn't snore! I closed my eyes and sank into the soft covers, relaxing, as reality melted into darkness, pulling me into a deep slumber for the long night.

**Rin's POV:**

I frantically sprinted with Miku and Len beside me, scared to the bone! That weird creep Gakupo was after us! After Auntie Luka! That crazy love-stricken freak was chasing the lot of us madly down the mall walkways, past the shops and businesses, attracting quite a bunch of unwanted attention from the mall crowd! Luka trailed after us, helpless, as she was carrying 20 equally heavy bags for us, lagging behind. Oh, we were so incredibly desperate! And then we heard a yelp come from behind us. We stopped, turned around, and spotted Luka, who'd tripped, sitting on the floor helplessly. Gakupo was approaching quickly! She was done for!

And like a ninja, he reached her, picked her up, and carried her and the bags away easily, Luka flailing and yelling. She was making a big scene, but as quickly as she started shouting, she stopped. Gakupo had said something to her. He took her out of the mall and they disappeared through the mall doors without a trace. Gee, I felt bad for Luka! What was Gakupo going to do to her? Would she be fine? My thoughts of Luka were interrupted by another trail of thoughts.

Actually, I kind of wish Len liked me, and enough to chase me around an entire gigantic mall 20 times and drag me somewhere we could be alone together. I shot Len a look. He shrugged back at me. What was _that_ supposed to mean?

We stopped at a restaurant to have dinner, and it also had karaoke! When we finished dinner, Miku said she had to leave to go home, or her mom would go crazy and call the cops, so she left. Len and I were left alone in the room, with the karaoke stage empty. No song was currently playing.

"Would you like to go, Rin?"

"Sure, I guess. It won't hurt to try it out, right?" I looked at Len. He gestured for me to go ahead with a sweep of the hand.

I hesitated, and he went over to me and encouraged me, hurriedly ushering me up to the front. It was just the two of us and we should make good use of our time alone together.

I stepped up to the microphone and picked a song. It was one of my innocent, sweet songs, "Rin Rin Signal"! But I needed Len to sing it with me, since it was a duet, of course.

"Len?"

"Yes, Rin?"

"Can you sing with me?" I requested of him in my cutest, sweetest voice. "It's a duet song." I cleared my throat loudly. "_Our_ duet song," I added, emphasizing the word "our".

"Sure." Len got up and took off his jacket. "Let's do this." He made one of his good-natured determined faces at me and smiled.

The music started, and I sang my part, and it expressed pretty much exactly how I was feeling at the moment. Wow! Amazing, huh? I felt wonderful, singing my feelings, my honest, real true feelings. I sung my heart out into the song. My feelings and the music became one, synced in perfect harmony. Len _was_ the only one who could make my small heart rin(g)! I smiled at Len as I sang my part with all the emotion I had. I even added expressions at him to go with the words. Len smiled at me, amused, and my part ended.

And then it was Len's part. I felt Len sung his part truly genuinely, too. Or maybe not. Maybe it was just his amazing voice that carried itself to my small heart, making it ring. But there was still a chance. His notes were sung so smoothly, so wonderfully, and seemed to be filled with so much emotion, I looked at him longingly. Len was my perfect match, right? I felt so right next to him, here, singing.

**Len's POV:**

Little does Rin know I feel the way this song has it in its very lyrics. I feel exactly the words I sing, and it's true. Does she like me how I like her? Maybe? Even a little? The way she had sung her part earlier was so true, felt so right, that I almost let myself believe her. Was it true? And there came our duet part, which did sound like one of our little conversations.

_This is the tactics of love._

_Isn't that being mean? No, not at all._

_But you're holding onto my hand, so I guess you're nice and sweet after all!_

When she sang this, I immediately instinctively grabbed her hand and held onto it, squeezing lightly. We had to follow the song, right? Rin smiled at me, a pretty smile that made my heart melt. She was so beautiful and kind! We sang the last part, and Rin actually pulled down my pants, and I actually had to "Hey you!" her and she actually had to squeal because I was wearing monkey banana boxers. And...it was embarrassing, but funny! I pulled up my pants and forgave her. Who couldn't forgive a little cute kitty like Rin?

"That was nice, wasn't it, Len?"

"Yeah..." I was distracted for a moment.

"Len? Are you zoning out again?"

I snapped back into reality. "What? Oh, yeah. Rin?"

Rin looked at me.

"Can I ask you something?"

"Yeah?"

"I love-" I was interrupted as Miku came bursting in through the door.

"I forgot my purse!" Miku exclaimed breathlessly, looking back and forth for it.

"Here it is!" Rin announced suddenly, holding up a green pouch no bigger than my palm.

"Thanks, Rin! Gotta run! Have fun, you two _lovebirds!_" Miku emphasized the last word in a strange tone, winking and looking back before shutting the door. I saw a sly smile on her face.

"So, Len. You were saying?"

"Well, I..." I didn't know how to break it to her.

"Hm?" Rin inquired. She stepped closer to me. I could smell her tangy orange perfume. It was a nice smell, not overdone. It fit well for Rin-a light, gentle smell, tangy, sweet, radiant-like smell, made just for her.

I took a deep breath. "Rin, I know we've been living together for a while, and I know you well now. We're not siblings, so-" My voice quavered, and Rin suddenly cut me off.

She was..._she was in tears!_ "So you've found a girlfriend, right? Is that why you're so happy?" Rin's voice shook dangerously. "I hope you two are happy together, whoever you love! I loved you! Goodbye, Len!" Rin ran out the door, and I could hear her crying tremendously. It made me so incredibly sad to see Rin that way. But I couldn't bother her, right?

I saw a piece of paper on the chair where Rin was sitting. I picked it up and unfolded it. I began to read it. It was a confession letter to me? How did it get here? And then Miku stepped into the room.

"I didn't realize it fell out of my purse. Someone wrote it to you and asked me to give it to you, but I knew Rin liked you, so I hid it to keep it from ruining everything. But I forgot to discard it! Sorry I made your day worse, but one thing to know about girls: when they run away crying, they want you to go come and find them. Make Rin feel better. Don't leave her alone out there. She loved you; she didn't tell me, but I knew. So what do you think you should do now?" She looked at me with a fire in her eyes that I'd never seen before.

I ran out of the room and dashed through the restaurant doors, wondering where Rin could have gone in the dark streets. Was she safe? I worried for her. The world was spinning and spinning around me, dizzying me. _Rin, where are you?_

**Rin's POV:**

My memories took me back to that confession letter. Why didn't tell me? He doesn't like me. I huddled at the base of the tree trunk, hugging my knees to myself. I sobbed, closing my eyes and remembering the happy memories we used to have at the park here. Ten years ago, as toddlers, we swung on the swing on the tree in the park, laughing, taking turns, and Luka watching us, eyes shining.

It was no longer like this. We'd grown up, ad now had to go our separate ways, right?

"That's not true," a voice behind me said, startling me. I turned around. It was Len, standing there, and he placed his hand on my shoulder. I realized I'd been speaking my thoughts aloud the whole time. So he probably heard everything!

Len wiped my tears off my cheek gently with his finger and tilted my chin up. "We can still be together." Sitting down next to me, he pulled out a tissue from his handy-dandy tissue pack and offered one to me. I took it gratefully and nodded at him.

"But you've found a girlfriend. You need to hang out with her now," I reminded him.

"I _have _found a girlfriend. You're right. But you know what?" he said in a sweet tone.

"Hm?" I replied, sniffling slightly.

"It's_ you_. I love _you,_ Rin," and he moved closer towards me and pressed his lips onto mine, closing his eyes. I saw the smile that formed on his mouth before our lips met. It was my first _real_ kiss where I actually felt something for someone. I loved every moment of it. Len pulled me into a tighter embrace. I felt his hands on my back, comforting and warm. I wrapped my arms around his neck, hugging him back.

And Len and I were there in the moonlight, kissing for real the first time, in the park we'd spent so much time in long ago. His lips felt blissfully soft on mine, making my heartbeat accelerate and my small heart rin(g)!

And banana boy should always try listening for my Rin(g) Rin(g) Signal! I love Len! I admit it! It's true.

Len is the only one who can make my small heart rin(g)!

**Len's POV:**

Banana boy has won the game! Love is a game, but I wasn't the loser! When I love Rin, the most beautiful, kind girl in school, it's a war. Because nobody can lay their dirty hands on banana boy's kitty Rin! I love Rin and I admit it! And now she's loved me back! This night so far has been the best in my entire life!

At night, we walked home, hand in hand after we settled the bill for the restaurant, of course. Miku actually took care of that, being the generous girl she is. Rin and I got ready for bed, and at night, Rin climbed into bed with me. She'd gotten rid of the thumb-sucking habit, too.

I didn't mind that she wanted to sleep with me. I thought it was cute when we were younger. And I believed it was _just _as cute now. Adorable, orange-loving, beautiful, bright, radiant, amazing, and most importantly, kind Rin.

Kitty Rin is who I love. My sweet little kitty Rin. She slept next to me, breathing softly. I was drawn into a deep, sweet dream. _Good night, Rin. Good night._

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**Well, hope you enjoyed this! There's going to be some different POVs added to this, including Luka and Gakupo, telling their side of the story. Again, feedback is welcomed, so go ahead, and review! Until next time! :) Unfortunately, it'll be a while, but I'm sure it won't take too long. D**


	7. What Happened?

**Chapter 7**

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**What Happened?**

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**A/N: Sorry about the rush last time. I was rushed and pressed for time, so I don't work very well when pressed for time, but here's my next edition! And also, sorry for the longer-than-usual wait! Something's going to happen in this chapter! Enjoy! :)**

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**Luka's POV:**

_Oh, what a pest Gakupo is! His long purple hair, is admirable, though. It's even neater than my pink hair! Does he brush his hair every day?_ _Hm... I wonder if he could tell me what hair care product he uses? I wonder if he could let me in on that if I do him a favor….._

As I was saying, being an independent and smart university graduate, I did not take to being swiftly swept off my feet and carried off by someone I did not particularly like. I was so embarrassed! That Gakupo, he chased me twenty times and more around that mall! I didn't even get to have my lunch! _Who does he think he is, trying to catch me and terrorize my foster siblings and their friend like that? _

Gakupo carried me to the parking lot of the mall and put me down. He looked me over up and down, in front and behind me.

"Are you okay?" he asked me, obviously worried about me. _Well, if you were worried so much about me, maybe you wouldn't have chased me for risk of me getting tired and made me lose my footing and fall down now, would you?_

What a rude bloke he was! Of course I wasn't okay! I'd sprained my ankle and broken my high heel! I couldn't walk in a broken high heel! That would degrade my social level and seemingly sophisticated style! I couldn't have people seeing me in degrading rags or broken heels!

"No, I'm NOT fine, and do NOT ever carry me like that again!" I brushed myself off and stepped away from him, annoyed at his suddenness earlier in the mall. _There was no way I'd ever want him to do that again!_

"Here, let me help." Gakupo squatted down in front of me. "Your heel seems to have been broken. I'll carry you-with your approval this time," he added, gesturing for me to climb on his back. He winked at me.

I looked at him suspiciously. "Are you going to try something again?" I questioned him cautiously, eyeing him "threateningly". Or at least I had thought so. The tone in Gakupo's response made me think about how I'd sounded after saying that to him.

"Of course I'm not! So you want to catch a ride on me or what?" Gakupo replied cheerfully.

I thought about it for a moment. "I guess…...it won't hurt….once?" It came out as a question-not what I intended. Gakupo said to me," Okay, sure. Here step on here."

I removed my heels and placed them in a bag, putting that bag safely away in my purse, which was a light crossbody, so I didn't have much to worry about. My feet were small, so my heels were small anyway. I stepped on his hand with my bare foot and hopped on his back, wrapping my arms tightly around his neck, over his shoulder. It was piggyback-style.

"Okay, here goes nothing," I mumbled to myself. As he stood up, I hoped he wouldn't drop me. When I had settled on him, I put my body on his back and sort of laid there. Somehow, I could feel his heartbeat through his back, and boy, was it strong! It was a pretty fast heartbeat, as if it had increased since I had touched him. _How strange…._

"You're a lot lighter than I expected," he finally responded, obviously surprised. Gakupo arched his eyebrows at me.

"Than you expected? Are you saying you thought I was fat?!" I asked him, offended. I assumed a dignified pose and lay my hands on my hips. _I didn't look fat, did I? Or did I? My dress wasn't that tight-fitting!_ I felt rather self-conscious.

"No, no! I just judged by appearance and not…..never mind." Gakupo dismissed the comment he'd made earlier, embarrassed, and instead replied to me," So, where do you want to go?"

I thought about it. Where did I want to go? Of course! I was still hungry from running all around the entire mall! He would pay for his troubles-by paying for my lunch today! I told him to carry me to my favorite buffet restaurant, not far from the mall, and I ate to my stomach's content. When the bill came, I had eaten so much, the amount of food I'd consumed wasn't even equal to twice of the amount for two people. Yet I was still skinny and slim, thanks to my hardworking high metabolism.

Gakupo, of course, ate too, but not as much as I did. He paid a small price for the total, since my favorite restaurant also charged low prices, despite their expensive, high-quality food, and left a tip. We left the restaurant and he continued to carry me home, which was not as far at all from my restaurant, of course.

I had to live close to Rin and Len to be able to care for them. He dropped me off at my house gates. I just now realized what big of a house I lived him compared to everyone else. Gakupo nodded at me and turned to leave, but I pulled his hand back.

"Wait, Gakupo." He looked me straight in the eye.

"Yes, Luka?" The words were stuck in my mouth. Did I really have the guts to say this? After all the trouble he caused me? I decided to do it. To say it to him, even though I didn't like him very much. These were words I'd seldom said to anyone at all, since I'd never needed very much help before. I was independent. But I was polite, too.

I hesitated for a moment before opening my mouth, speaking aloud the words I'd never used before in five years, ever. "Thank you," I finally blurted out. It was easy to say this. The words flowed out of my mouth smoothly and easily, rolling off my tongue naturally, as if I'd always used them. It felt great. I finally said those words again.

"You're welcome," Gakupo said back, smiling. "Bye," he added in a bright, friendly tone. He waved at me as he walked back down the pathway of my massive estate and out the security gates, greeting the guards and watchmen, admiring the gardens and my "front porch" landscape on his way out. Gakupo finally became a speck in the distance, slowly moving away farther and farther by the second.

It had finally occurred to me that I'd been standing there the whole time, ogling him and his flowing purple hair. What was I doing? I shook my head and typed in my security password, then entered my front yard, with a winding path that snaked around the various plants rooted in the soil. Exercise was good for my health; the longer the path, the healthier I'd be.

I finally arrived at my front door and got my key out, unlocked the door, and stepped into my home. _Home, sweet home._ At last, I could relax this weekend after managing some intense company business. I plopped down into my cushy recliner and sighed.

Maybe Gakupo wasn't so bad after all. He didn't seem like such a freak or a bad person. He was actually pretty nice. And considerate, too.

Then I remembered. _Luka, you forgot to ask Gakupo about his shampoo!_

**Gakupo's POV:**

I carried a flailing Luka to the parking lot and dumped her in a heap on the ground. Okay, maybe not a heap, but she was trying to collect herself and stay on her feet. She was so angry, I was surprised she could stay focused enough to speak to me.

I looked at her, up and down, in front of her and behind her. "Are you okay?" I asked her, worried. _Did I harm her or break a limb?_

"No, I'm NOT fine, and do NOT ever carry me like that again!" Luka yelled at me, obviously furious at me for embarrassing her, the president of a big company, in front of a considerably large crowd. I guess she was pretty cautious about her public image. Okay, fine with me.

Luka brushed herself off and swept dust off her clothes. I noticed that one of her heels had been broken off. "Here, let me help you. Your heel seems to have been broken. I'll carry you-with your approval this time," I offered her, gesturing for Luka to climb on me. I winked.

After she interrogated me a bit more and eyed me cautiously, I let her climb on me and wrap her arms around my neck. Her hair smelled good, and my heartbeat quickened when Luka "cuddled" in next to me, her body resting on my back. In fact, my heartbeat felt so fast and loud to me, I was positively certain she'd shifted because she's felt it through my back. It was probably just that she was heavy-right? I ignored my heartbeat's ever-quickening pace and stood up, sizing her weight up.

Surprisingly, Luka was much lighter than I thought. When I informed her of that fact, she heated up again and argued with me for a bit, then looked at herself self-consciously. _Ooh, bad move, Gakupo. Wrong thing to say._ I knew how to be an ultra super-cool samurai, but when it came to understanding girls, I was about as successful as a dolphin being told to jump from a plane high in the sky and glide in the air!

I asked Luka her restaurant of choice, since I realized my her around chasing around the mall more than twenty times to attempt to ask her for homework help had evaporated her energy. She took me to her favorite restaurant, then ate the amount equivalent to what a family of ten bears getting ready to hibernate would eat. _Eggplants, Luka sure had an appetite!_

When the bill came, there wasn't much to pay-her favorite restaurant charged pretty low prices, and she liked saving money, even though she was one of the richest people in town. I left a tip, and I continued to carry her, piggyback-style, back home, which, of course was easy, since even after eating like bears, she'd weighed exactly the same, somehow. It was probably due to the fact that she had a high metabolism.

When I arrived at the front gates to her home in her enormous estate, I dropped her off, bid farewell to her for now, and began to trot away. But Luka called after me," Wait, Gakupo."

Somehow, I had a giddy feeling in my chest. I felt a tingling sensation race up and down my body. _Weird._ I turned around and answered," Yes, Luka?" I waited for her response, curious as to what she would say next.

It seemed as if she had hesitated for a moment, but then Luka finally opened her mouth, and the words came out smoothly and easily for her. "Thank you." Luka probably wasn't aware of it, but she had a slight smile forming on her face, directed at me. _Why do I feel so… so… what's the word? So…. strange…. when she smiles at me?_ I shrugged off the sensation and ignored it.

"You're welcome," I replied at last, in a friendly tone, nodding my head, smiling at her again, and accompanying my words with a wink.

Then I turned to the path, started strolling down the trail, and left Luka behind, heading for home, which was not too far away from her massive, luxurious residence. On the way out, I admired the gardens, fountains, plants, and specimens of butterflies that lingered in her front yard. They were plenty in numbers and varied in colors.

_It must be wonderful to be rich. With all the food you could ever want, the biggest houses there were on the market, large front yards, numerous gardens, and other luxuries, being rich seemed great. But I knew I didn't need that. I just needed a friend. A friend who would be good to me. _

Then, it occurred to me-I'd forgotten to ask her for homework help!

_Aw, eggplants!_

I'd have to come back to Luka later on. I'd see her again.

**Len's POV:**

I thought about it again and again, tossing and turning in bed-and then it came to me. Rin was too sensitive to start this early. I needed to give her time. I felt like I'd made a mistake, jumping into this too early and I might have scared Rin. So I cleared my mind, and pretended last night had never happened. I had to give her some more space and time. I quietly slipped out of bed, carried Rin carefully to her room, set her down gently on her bed, and pulled the covers over her slowly.

_Okay, Len. Pretend nothing happened. We're still foster siblings and nothing has changed yet._ I convinced myself successfully. I meditated on my bed upon returning to my room, breathing deeply. In fact, I, myself as well, was actually scared of jumping into something so early. I was too rushed. _Stop rushing, Len! Take your time. You don't have a girlfriend and you don't need one-yet. Wait some more. Besides, Rin might get scared. _

Another day passed. The weekend was over, but I still couldn't forget. Rin had a girl's night out with Miku and her friends, and I had stayed at home alone. I finished up one of my school projects, brushed my teeth after taking a shower and getting dressed, and climbed into bed. I was going to sleep early. I remembered what I had told myself the day before. To take my time sleeping applied as well. My eyes drifted to a close, and I was immersed in darkness, the light seeping through my bedroom window slowly fading away.

The next morning, I sat up in my bed, refreshed. I started to sit and meditate once more on my bed. Concentrate, Len. Focus on forgetting. When I opened my eyes, I felt frantic. Why did I feel like I had forgotten something? Calming down, I couldn't remember a thing. I couldn't even remember why in the banana I was meditating! _Why am I meditating again? Who cares? It's morning, and I gotta get to school now! _

And I prepared myself for school, dressing in my uniform, making sure it wasn't wrinkly after taking my time to iron it out. I made sure it wasn't disheveled, smoothed down my pants, and grabbed my backpack.

I grabbed a simple breakfast-a banana-for the morning. Rin had left a note, telling me she had already started her walk to school with Miku, since I was "late" all the time. And I also quote this that she said on the note she had some "business" to take care of with Miku. I sighed and shook my head. _Girls._

Walking through the doorway, I closed the front door and locked it, starting my morning stroll through my neighborhood to arrive at school. I took a deep breath.

_Here's school, banana boy!_

**Rin's POV:**

I awoke from a deep slumber, trying to recall the events from the previous night. It was fuzzy, and I couldn't seem to remember what had happened last night except for the remaining memory of me and Len walking home together, his arm around me. Why had his arm been around me? I guessed it was probably cold? _To the ground with my terrible memory! Ugh! I can't remember anything!_

Why did I feel like something important happened last night? Probably it wasn't anything worthwhile to remember. I put on some clothes and left the house, reminding Len today I'd be out later than usual. It was my girl's day out with Miku and my besties.

When I came back, I unlocked the door and went inside the house. It was dark, so I turned on some lights and set down my belongings and shopping bags. I took a drink from a glass of milk for the night and washed the glass, put it up and went upstairs to get ready for bed.

Before climbing into bed for sleep, I peeked into Len's room, silently creeping the door open. He was already asleep. I pranced quietly back to my room, jumped into my bed, and pulled the covers over myself, closing my eyes to finally fall into a slumber.

Even though it had only felt like I'd slept for a few seconds, morning sunlight streamed in through my window. I still felt like I was forgetting something somehow, but I shrugged off that notion. I ignored my feelings and went on with preparing for school. I got dressed, brushed my teeth, and grabbed my orange juice, freshly made by Len last night and placed in the fridge. _Thanks, Len!_

I peered into Len's room. He was still asleep, breathing lightly and softly. What a little angel he was! I thought affectionately, and began to write a note to him. I was going to walk to school with Miku today and discuss some "business" with her. I left the note on the fridge and started my walk to school, closing the door quietly behind me as to not disturb my sleeping Len from his "beauty sleep".

I found Miku along the way to school and discussed the usual teen drama happening around school. The time flew by, and before we knew it, we had arrived at school. I split up to go to class and then arrived at my desk in math class fifteen minutes early. Gee, Len sure was late today! Usually Len arrived thirty minutes early! _I wonder where he is now?_

I sat at my desk and Miku walked in, having come back from her locker with her things, and then sat herself down next to me. Five minutes before class started, Len practically galloped into the room and jumped into his seat, looking rather jolly today for some strange reason. He's probably just being a boy, Rin. No reason to bother.

And as soon as class began and Ms. Yowane skipped into class merrily, Len's head hit the desk. He was sleeping, of course.

No reason to worry about his grades. He got A's in almost everything, one of his strong subjects being math as well.

Class started, and now, it became a daily thing for Ms. Yowane to hold a fun activity in her class every time we were in math, so I loved math now, and even more, since I could finally understand the lessons and topics we studied.

**Miku's POV:**

Rin and Len's relationship seemed mutual and neutral now. It didn't seem like they were dating, like on Saturday. But I guess things had changed. It was as if Rin and Len had both forgotten what happened the other night. Like they both had forgotten, not just one of them.

_What in the leeks what going on here?_ I had a feeling that they wouldn't be getting too close to each other anytime soon. Which also meant there was going to be no drama for me to meddle in, no more fresh exciting events that I could gossip about, or bother Rin with, because she didn't seem fazed by my suggestive tones towards Len in front of her anymore.

_Their relationship has dissolved in the course of a day! How strange..._ Well, it was time for me, Miku, queen of divas, master of high fashion, and spreader of rumors, to take action. I would not give up on this.

There was something there, between them, but Rin was too blockheaded and thick to figure it out that there was even a little something there. Len was just too innocent and oblivious as to what was happening around him sometimes, even though he was pretty smart.

No offense to either of them, but I wondered at times how they could live their lives like that, so clueless to so many things. I liked fresh drama. Drama was exciting, thrilling, and fun to mess around with. Not in my life, but other people's lives. It was exhilarating, hitchhiking along for an adventure, latching on to others' problems and making it better somehow.

I wasn't exactly the drama queen, but could sure make a lasting difference in people's lives. Romance and drama in my life? It wasn't for me. Romance was just not me. I wasn't romantic. I could start romances, but only with other people.

_Romance is not for me. Besides, Miku, who in the leek would like you? You spread too many rumors and cause trouble sometimes. Don't you seem like a nosy brat to outsiders? Isn't that what I am? A nosy brat? A meddling hitchhiker? Like a remora on a shark?_ I thought about this on my way home. I unlocked the door and stepped inside my home, relieved to be away from all the school air at last.

I got my homework done quickly, checked it, and then turned on the television to see what was on, and scanned through the channels until I found a TV drama-appropriate and fitting to who I was and my usual TV preferences. I cooked my dinner, just for me, while watching the TV drama, and ate watching the TV, immersed in the characters' conversations and their hand motions. I cleaned up my dinner afterwards, washing the dishes and silverware, then putting them up to dry off after I finished washing them.

I sometimes did feel kind of lonely, being single. Always getting into my friends' personal issues, I never talked about mine-not because I lacked the desire to, but because I didn't have a life or personal experience of my own-and nobody really knew about much of what happened in my life when nobody was around. That was the question.

And the answer? Nothing. My own personal life had never been thrilling or exciting, dramatic or nerve-racking. It was just plain, old, boring, and leeky.

At times, I wished I didn't always have to be alone and someone could bounce into my plain life and paint a rainbow in my future. _Who would that person be? What would that person do?_

I wanted someone to hop into my life and make something good happen for me. So far, only I had done things for people but I had never met anyone with the goodwill to do anything for me-because of my meddling nature or clumsy personality, I didn't have a clue-but I wished and hoped that someone would be there for me-someday, and soon.

I kind of felt I was sinking into a depression, being so alone all the time, even though I had my friends. And I was waiting for a person to sprinkle a miracle on me, making me happier, on account of my very own life. I sighed deeply, thinking about all this.

I had gotten ready for sleep, and pulled the blankets over my leek pajama-covered self, and fell into a dreamless sleep, reminding me I had nothing in my life to dream about.

I woke up and continued my daily routine, going to school, meeting up with Rin and Len on the way. For the rest of the week, the same daily morning schedule kept on, and on Friday, I said bye to my friends, walking back home, keeping my head down, thinking about my depression again. What miracle was going to happen to yank me out of this deep, dark void? When was it going to happen?

As I approached my front door and got out my house keys, a masculine voice called from behind me curiously, "Hello there! I live next door to you now, and I am rather unfamiliar with this new neighborhood. I just moved in-I'm from up north, from the city. I'm new here, and I'll be going to the school that you just walked from. I'll be a new student there, and I was told to ask you for guidance around the town and school, since we have the same surname. Surprising, right? Your name is Miku-is that right? I'm sure we'll become great friends! Would you be so kind as to show me around, please? I'd greatly appreciate it!"

As I turned around, I saw my miracle, outstretched hand, ready to grab my hand for a friendly handshake. The newcomer smiled at me and gave a little wave. _He would change my life. Thank you, world_.

I stepped towards him-the new guy in town. He was just a bit taller than me, but I could figure out from my previous people-watching experiences that he was the same age as I was, obviously. "Of course, I would be happy to show you around town and my school, now our school. And you're correct, my name is Miku. I'll take you around the town for the weekend. You'll have the weekend to prepare for school. How are you, and what would your name be?"

_Things were finally looking up for me. I used to be small and scared, but hopefully, this newcomer into my life would change my path. My miracle and I have crossed paths. It was like he dropped out of the sky, an angel come to rescue me from my internal, deep suffering in my mind. _

_Miku's "future" is finally looking good!_ my conscience told me. _Thank you, conscience. Thank you, world._

I've come to meet a turning point in my life at last.

I've got a life now.

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**Okay, hope you enjoyed that! It was a plot twist for Miku! A new character was introduced into the story. Review and see if you can figure out who it might be based on the clues! )**


	8. The New Guy and The Future Ahead

**Chapter 8**

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**The New Guy and the Future Ahead**

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**A/N: I promised myself to not start the next chapter until someone got the new guy right, and a Guest did! So congrats, and good job! Here it is! :)**

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**Mikuo's POV:**

"My name is Mikuo." I shook my new neighbor's hand warmly. She was pretty and cute, and a little bit shorter than me. Her hair color was the same as mine and I could tell that we were the same age from using my keen observation skills. I liked her instantly. We were going be great friends!

I had moved here, hopeful to make good friends and get a fresh start. And here it was, right in front of my eyes. My to-be friend, maybe. She had introduced herself to me and told me she'd take me out to see the school and town later. And we have the same surname! That's pretty cool!

"But first, did you take a train here?" Miku questioned me curiously.

"Well, I took the train here for 5 hours straight, no stops."

"You must be tired! Here, wait for me a moment here and I'll help you get settled down." Miku proceeded to enter her home, drop her things down, and came back out wearing a casual set of clothes. "Let's go over your new place," Miku told me, and we were soon inside my new home.

"Roomy, spacey, big, new….." Miku called out to me as she explored my new humble abode. "And it's nicer than mine!"

"Oh, thank you….." I replied to her comments, not knowing what else to say. "I'll need to unpack now, so I'm going outside to get my stuff," I called to my new neighbor. I wrenched open the front door and stepped out of my home, approaching my boxes of belongings, piled up like a mountain. My eyes widened as I took in all the "scenery". How am I ever going to… I began, and then Miku's voice interrupted my thoughts.

"I'll help you with unpacking and bringing the boxes in!" Miku's eyes suddenly lit up cheerfully. "I know a way to help! Let's play a game that will also help you unpack and bring in your boxes!"

I was confused. What kind of game included unpacking, and how would it be fun? Miku said to me," Okay, Mikuo. I'll sit on a box and you'll aim for the door and push me towards it off the box mountain. And then vice versa."

I looked at Miku like she was trying to get killed. "Are you really going to let me push you off a high box mountain?" I asked in disbelief and wonder.

"Well, then I'll push myself off!" Miku climbed to the top, rested herself on and box, and leaned forward. "Here goes nothing!"

"Wait, no!"

And then she was off, sliding down the box mountain and hooting with laughter, teal twin tails whipping in the wind, and she finally disappeared quickly into my house. What if she got hurt?

I sprinted back into my house, finding no sign of Miku. I saw the box she slid on, but Miku was missing. I turned around, and a loud,"BOO!" filled my ears, making me squeal like a little girl. Hearing my little squeal and seeing my strange expression made Miku drop to the ground and roll around, mad with laughter, clutching her sides.

Miku's laugh was absolutely beautiful, ringing in my ears like a little bell. I loved her laugh at once. Miku picked herself up from the floor and brushed herself off, a giggle escaping from her lips, pressed together.

"We just met, but you're hilarious! So, now that I've proved it safe, wanna go?" Miku nodded through the open door to the giant box mountain waiting outside. I'd get to know her better.

"Sure!" I responded, and for the rest of the evening and afternoon, we had fun playing box sled and laughing loudly until one of the neighbors shushed us. We finished up my unpacking a tad bit more quietly, and then wished each other goodnight, heading off to each of our separate homes, ending the day on that note. It was a wonderful day.

I lay my head down on my recently unpacked pillow and lay on my mattress, hugging my plush leek. Miku and I shared the same obsession of leeks, which I loved about her as well. I drifted off and slept soundly.

I awoke early in the morning, ready to begin my second day in my new town. I quickly began to unpack the rest of my wardrobe, organize my clothes, and put them away in my new large closet, which was the perfect size for my numerous articles of clothing and accessories.

I unpacked my kitchen things and made my breakfast for the morning, eating it and enjoying it. I opened up a box and pulled out sofas, recliners, and footrests for my living room, as well as coffee table parts which I assembled, and placed them in my dining and living rooms. Last thing, I needed to go buy a TV later on, so I'd take care of that soon. I cleaned up and recycled all my boxes outside and brushed myself off, finally finished with most of my major unpacking.

I undressed in my new closet, as I was wearing my working clothes earlier, and put on a casual outfit: a pair of long pants with a blue shirt, and I slipped a pullover with a hoodie on. I wore my socks and shoes, then remembered to take my wallet and phone with me.

I yanked open the front door and stumbled outside, nearly tripping over myself. I am such a clumsy fool! I mentally scolded myself. I pulled out my keys, locked the door behind me, and saw the truck in front of my home unloading my car. Finally, my car was here!

I directed the truck to place my car in my driveway, and then there it was. They had given it a wash before taking it here, and it looked brand new. In fact, it really was brand new. I had only gotten it a week before moving. I thanked the truck driver and he drove off.

"Mikuo!" Miku called out to me. "Up early, aren't you?" she asked while leaning against her house door and peering out at me. She smiled and nodded at me.

"Yep. Just wanted to get an early start on unpacking the rest of my stuff."

"Nice. I'm just back from a morning jog." Now that I looked more closely, I could see that her forehead was covered in sweat, and she was dressed in what I took to be jogging clothes: a pair of shorts and a sports tank top. "I'll go inside and get changed so we can get to the mall and I'll take you around the town after we shop."

Miku pointed to my car. "Nice ride you got there. Are we taking it today?"

"Yes, we are. Now go ahead and get changed. We've got plenty to do today." I walked over to her house and ushered her inside. It was time to get to know my neighbor better.

I waited outside, whistling for a few minutes, leaning against the door. It was still eight in the morning. Pretty early. After about only five minutes that I counted on my clock, Miku's front door suddenly opened and I fell into her house, surprised. But this wasn't the embarrassing part. As I fell, waiting to land on my behind, I closed my eyes, and then after a few seconds of waiting for the impact to arrive, it never did.

I finally became insanely curious as to what happened and peeked one eye open. What I saw was a truly and really weird sight. Miku was holding me up! Like o one of those dancing TV shows where the lady does a twirl and the man holds her up at the end!

This was pretty much exactly what happened, but Miku wasn't a man, and neither was I dancing! Miku noticed I had finally opened my eyes and then asked me funnily," So Prince Charming, are you done being a ballerina or what?" Miku arched her eyebrow at me, and I could clearly see in her eyes that she was hysterically laughing in the inside, but she kept it inside, fortunately for me.

"Um…..yes?" I replied, but it came out as more of a question than an actual statement, which wasn't even what I was going for anyway. I was nervous. Why was she letting me stay here for so long? This strange position… And as I thought, I looked up and saw…...cameras!

"Miku….are those cameras taking pictures of me?" I inquired in a low voice.

"Yes."

I gave another little squeal and jumped out of her arms suddenly, yelping once more and bouncing around like a mad jackrabbit. Once I realized what I was doing, I stopped and apologized to her.

"So, was I heavy?" I questioned her worriedly.

"What guy asks about his weight?" Miku giggled at me.

"A guy who's worried about tiring his neighbor from saving him for trying to be a ballerina."

"Of course you weren't heavy! Not that heavy! Look at you, skinny as a leek, worried about your weight!" Miku pointed to me.

I grinned sheepishly and changed the subject. "So, let's go. You ready?" I said to her, glancing at Miku.

"Yeah, let's go!" Miku called to me, already making her way to my car.

The next thing I knew, we were driving away, Miku giving me directions to the mall.

**Kaito's POV:**

There was a new guy in today yesterday, and I remembered giving directions to Miku's house for him. Strange thing was, his hair color was the exact same shade as Miku's I'd never seen anyone with the same hair color as Miku. Her color was rare. And his surname as well. It was exactly the same.

Mikuo, his name was. They even had similar names! How funny! How strange! I laughed at the thought I had earlier. Mikuo, the new guy, and Miku, the all-around girl, getting together. Hah! That chance was slim: a million to zero! Miku was not the dating type, I knew. She simply didn't like the idea of having her own romance with anybody.

Yet, as I tried to go to sleep tonight, I was woken up by the sounds of Miku and her new neighbor playing box sled in his front yard. They were rather loud, so I called through my window and told them to keep it down a bit. After a bit, their laughs and cries began to die down and they went back to each of their separate houses. Finally! I could get some well-deserved rest at last!

Mikuo, trouble that boy was; nothing but mischief. Though he was kind, I could see the trickery and clownish side in Mikuo's eyes at first glance. Who knew what they would do together once Mikuo became Miku's friend? I shook my head and climbed back into my soft bed and hugged by ice cream teddy bear. Hey, I couldn't be laughed at for being obsessed with ice cream, right?

I closed my eyes and slept soundly.

I slept through most of the next morning since it was Saturday, and got up from bed at ten o'clock at last, turning on the TV for my morning. I peered out my window while eating my breakfast in silence. Mikuo's car that I heard earlier in the morning was gone. Miku had probably gone to show him around the mall. What I knew was that Miku, unlike the rest of the boys in my neighborhood and I, would actually like shopping; at first glance I knew he was a fashionable guy.

Just how good of friends would they become?

_~3 years time skip~_

**Haku's POV:**

Kaito and I had been together for our whole lives, now. He had taken me out for the weekend to an amusement park, and even though we were adults now, I still appreciated his kind gesture. I rode on several roller coasters, rides, and played lots of games. It was truly a good time.

We still taught at school and our students had grown up well. Len had finally [FINALLY] learned the meaning of the word "failure" in math class during the first day back to school on Monday, causing him to break out into tears, Rin attempting to comfort him and giving him a little hug. I sighed thinking about it. Young love was so cute and sweet.

We still had all our second jobs as Vocaloids, but it was just a once-in-a-while thing for us; it was a fun hobby for the little students, though. I remembered that new boy who moved into the town of Vocaloids three years ago. His name, Mikuo. Afterwards, he became a Vocaloid as well.

Kaito and I got off the ride when it ended and he held his hand out to me. "Are you ready to exit?"

"Yeah, let's go."

"Haku."

"Hm?"

"Are you hungry?" Kaito asked me, a funny smile forming on his lips.

"Yes. How on earth did you know?"

"Well, I couldn't help but notice your stomach was starting to imitate Chewbacca there."

"Kaito!" I playfully punched him in the arm.

"Ow…." he complained, trying to hide his grin.

"Come on, it didn't hurt that much!" I told him, giggling.

Kaito straightened up. "Yeah, let's go. I'll get you something."

After eating our lunch and getting off the last ride for the day, Kaito and I explored the beach of the amusement park, clean, and litter-free. White sand danced in the gentle breeze, but not high enough to get into our eyes. I looked at nice shells in different shapes and sizes, admiring them and examining them as I walked along the shore, Kaito not saying a word.

When we had walked to the end of the beach and halfway back, he suddenly spoke aloud. "Oh, you should be careful. You shoe's untied!" Kaito looked down at my feet and crouched down, then chose to kneel.

"Oh, thank you, I didn't-" I stopped. I didn't have shoes on! It was a beach, and I had taken off my shoes!

"You can't walk around with your shoe untied, can you, Haku?" Kaito fidgeted with something, but I couldn't see what it was.

"Kaito, I'm not wearing-"

Kaito turned up to look at me at last, holding what appeared to me as a small box in his hand.

It dawned on me. Realization crept up my spine. I put my hands up to my face. Is Kaito going to…..propose? I gasped softly, waiting for Kaito's words, and waiting to answer with a "yes!" I was so happy and my heart beat faster.

"Haku….."

"Yes, Kaito?" I responded expectantly, gazing down at him, a smile on my face.

"...Put on these socks, will you?" Kaito opened the box. "Your feet-I'm sorry to say this..-really, truly, and utterly stink. Seriously." He wrinkled his nose for extra effect, shoving the small box with socks in it up at me.

AAAAAHHH! Kaito, I'll get you! I shove that box up….if I have to get you to stop being immature! My face flared up, my eyes flashed fire, and I chased Kaito all around the beach.

"You Kaito! I'll get you if it's the last thing I do!"

"Okay, but think fast!" He threw a small shiny object up at me. I caught it. In my hands, there it was. A ring! Beautiful, gold and silver with ice cream on it! Gold cone, silver-white ice cream scoop! White, the color of my hair!

I was overjoyed! "Haku."

I looked at Kaito.

"Will you….. will you be mine? Marry me?" Kaito took the ring from my hand and bowed down low, holding up the ring to me. I was so shocked.

"I-yes, Kaito, yes! I will!" As annoying as he was, I did love him! He slipped the ring on my finger and carried me bridal style and did a spin. Kaito eventually put me down, showing my something else.

"I'm wearing an ice cream cone with a blue ice cream, sapphire. It's my hair color. Yours is white-diamond."

"Where will we go for honeymoon after marriage?"

"Out of town," Kaito replied with twinkling eyes.

_~After marriage~_

At our marriage, since it was also on graduation day for the students as well, the school principal, drunk Meiko, gave a speech, and then dropped onto the ground, obviously too drunk from the wedding party to speak anymore, so Rin and Len's class president stepped up to continue her speech. And then some students started crying after that, and then came the last part. Everyone threw their hats up in the air and rejoiced with each other, happy and sad at the same time. But in the city of Vocaloids, everyone went to the same performance academy anyways, so I didn't see any reason as to why anyone was going to miss each other.

I hugged all my great students, including Miku, Gakupo, Rin, Len, Piko, Neru, and many others that stayed with us teachers for all those years. I finally had to leave the scene and heard the chatter about college and such.

"So, where are you going?"

"The Vocacademy."

"You?"

"Same."

"Where are you going for summer?"

"Taking my fun job as a Vocaloid!"

"Me too!"

Little did they know it was going to be a hard job, being a Vocaloid.

Kaito and I drive in our honeymoon car to the airport, waving back at our friends and students. If Len was worried about Kaito still stealing Rin, he had no reason anymore. We drove off into the distance towards the airport for our honeymoon, heading farther away from home. Goodbye, everyone.

All my students wished me a great time before leaving earlier.

"Have a wonderful time, Miss Haku!" Rin exclaimed clapping her hands together.

"See you soon!" It was my good student Len.

"Goodbye, Miss Haku!" Miku.

"Until the end of summer, Mr. Kaito!" Piko.

"I wish you both a great honeymoon!" Neru.

"Remember to shop 'till you drop!" Mikuo grinned widely.

A few other good well-wishers pitched in as well, and then my attention turned back from the flashback to the future ahead of me. I was going to be gone the entire summer. And I was going to enjoy myself and have a great time with my new husband. I just hoped the little Vocaloid students would be fine.

**Len's POV:**

I lay, bored, on the floor of my room for the summer. Nothing to do except talk to Master, the Mayor of our Vocaloid city and our dear welcomer, and the Vocaloids. I needed some real fun. I couldn't just lie around for the entire summer!

And then I had an idea! I dashed over to Rin's room and opened the door…...and then she was GONE! She had only been in there moments before! What had Rin said to me earlier?

"Darn my banana of a brain!" I scolded myself harshly. I put my hands on my head, sat down, calmed, and attempted to remember what she'd said to me.

_flashback_

"Len!"

I sat in my room reading the last of my comics. "Yeah, Rin?"

"I'm going out now! I'm bored, okay?"

"Okay, okay."

Rin started to open the door. I suddenly realized something and sprinted out of my room and down the stairs, stopping in front of Rin and grabbing her wrist, pulling her back.

"Rin, where are you going?"

"To the water park." I could see Rin held her gym bag in her arms, a towel, and through her white, almost transparent see-through top, I could see she wore a one piece swimsuit. Since when was Rin scared to show off herself? She was beautiful!

"With who?"

"With Miku, Mikuo, Gakupo, Luka, Neru, and Piko, of course. To celebrate graduation. We're having a party. You're included. Come on. Did you forget?"

"No, I….." I thought of my shota-like figure. I wouldn't last a day if they teased me about not being shirtless. All the boys, even Piko, wouldn't be wimpy enough to not go shirtless. Besides, it was hot anyway this summer.

"Well?"

"No, no thanks. I'm...not going."

"But why? It's more fun that just chilling at boring old home."

I whispered to her in a low voice. "They'll see….." I looked around before continuing leaning in closer to her. "...my shota body…."

Rin widened her eyes and smiled at me, shaking her head. "Len, you don't have a shota body! It's been three years! Come on! You'll be fine!"

I shook my head, defiant.

"Here, let me see." Rin lifted up my shirt and gasped.

I tried to pull it back down. "Rin, stop," I requested quietly. "The door is open and people will see!" I whisper-shouted at her.

"Len, it's fine. Have you even looked at yourself for these past three years?"

I shook my head no.

"You haven't looked at your chest in the mirror for the past three years? Serious?"

"No."

"Well, get inside and look now!" Rin closed the door and ushered me to the full-length mirror in our house. She pulled up my shirt and turned me to the mirror.

I gasped a surprise squeak. I had lost my shota figure! I only had a shota voice now! But I still wasn't going to go. I just didn't want to leave the coolness of our home. Cool, breezy air conditioning. I wasn't going to walk to the water park! After all, I was still lazy!

"I'm not going. It's too hot." I crossed my arms and told her this firmly.

Rin shrugged. "Okay, if it suits you, cool story, bro."

She turned from me and walked out the door upon opening the door, then abruptly closed it gently, locking it behind her. I raced back upstairs to my room and hopped back onto my bed, resuming where I'd left off from my comic.

_flashback ends_

How could I have forgotten such a long and important conversation such as that? I rubbed my head and dressed in my swimming trunks, then put on a light white shirt that allowed my skin to breathe, knowing it'd be hot outside. I grabbed my gym bag, threw a couple of things into it for swimming, then clutched a towel to my chest and headed out towards the water park., determined to find the reason for Rin's five-hour long disappearance. Five hours. Something was wrong. I could feel it.

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**Okay, hoped you liked that! That was chapter 8, there! For about the next and last 7 chapters (I'm planning on making this 15 chapters total), Kaito and Haku will be out of the plot (sorry to those Haku+Kaito fans out there), and the story, originally planned to emphasize Rin and Len's relationship, will focus mainly on them. From time to time, it'l go on and off, though, so there. :) Hope you enjoyed this so far!**


	9. The Hunt!

**Chapter 9**

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**The Accident Before the Hunt**

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**A/N: And here's where the series title starts to come back in! Let me say it: Here's chapter 9! :D**

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**Luka's POV:**

I had been drowning myself in tears, Gakupo was comforting me, and he had an arm around me, patting my back. As Rin's foster sister, it was all my fault!

"It'll be all right," Gakupo tried to assure me, but he let his gaze lower, and I knew that he was not saying this for sure.

"No, it won't be! Len will hate me, Master will fire me, and all the Vocaloids will kill me! I ruined Rin's life!" I cried hysterically. I tried to wipe my tears away with my hands. Sobbing uncontrollably, I took a seat down at the local Vocahospital. It was specially designed to care and repair broken, damaged, and injured Vocaloids. Rin was in the ER at the time. So you want to know what happened? Here it was.

_Flashback_

All the Vocaloid grads and I strolled happily on the sidewalk, back to our neighborhood where we all lived. Rin was happily skipping along in front, sipping an orange smoothie and laughing. Gakupo trailed behind in his regular clothes, since he had opted out of swimming. Obviously, he hadn't wanted anyone to know he didn't know how to swim. I munched on some of my tuna sandwich, and Piko played with his USB cable tail, pretending it was a lasso and waving it in the air, constantly shouting nonsense out loud.

"Yee haw!" Piko imitated the Western style so-called "cowboys". It was also helping him dry off his cable tail. Earlier, he'd used it as a kind of a motor for him in the water, and got Gakupo soaked all over in the result. I was still giggling slightly from that situation.

"Yee haw!" Piko exclaimed again. He was _way_ too old to be doing this. Seventeen! A seventeen-year old boy here was playing make-believe, or pretend, shouting out gibberish! Wasn't that funny now? Cute, too! I pet Piko and rubbed his hair affectionately.

"Hey, I'm not a baby! I'm seventeen! I'm even taller than you!" True. Piko stood three inches taller than me, but that wasn't going to take away the babyish quality of his behavior.

"Yeah, but I'm still older than you. And you sure are acting like fourteen again. Besides, your name! Your nickname is Pikochu!" I giggled at him and mumbled to myself. "Kids." I sighed.

"Hey, I heard that, Luka!" Piko exclaimed in a mock-menacing tone, eyeing me. Then he burst into laughter. "Okay, maybe I am being a baby." He nodded agreeably towards me and stopped twirling his cable immediately.

Just then, Rin slipped into the middle of the road ahead of us, coming to a crossing. The stoplight said to walk, but there was a car, fast approaching Rin and her skipping self. "Rin, wait!" I cried, worried. I took a few more steps toward the road, getting the urge to rush out and pull Rin back to safety, but somehow, I couldn't move. "There's a car! It may be safe to walk, but not to-" I stopped talking and started to rush towards Rin and dropped my sandwich.

There were a car honk and a screech that tore through the quietness of the street. Rin was sprawled across the road, blood spilling out of the back of her head, her nose, and I had heard several cracks. I knelt down at her side, my heart breathing faster. Rin's orange smoothie had been dropped on the asphalt, spilled in a mess all over the road.

"Rin! Rin! Wake up!" I shook her shoulders roughly and urgently, like I was a mad dog. "Stay with me! Don't give up!" All the rest of the Vocaloid group members dashed towards us. I put a thumb to her wrist firmly and kept it still, searching for a heartbeat. It was there, but just barely there. Rin's heartbeat beat so softly and was so terribly small, she could have even been dead. I put a finger to her nose. I couldn't feel Rin breathing at all!

"Call an ambulance!" I ordered the others. Gakupo got out his phone and began to quickly dial a number in, almost dropping his phone in the rush. _Stay with me, Rin. We need you. Len needs you, too. You can't give up now._ I started to sob, even though I had heard countless times that sobbing wouldn't solve any problems in reality.

"Get Len!" I called urgently to Piko. He dialed in Len's home number frantically, fumbling to hit the correct buttons for the number. Piko pressed his phone gently to his ear and listened intently, waiting impatiently for a response from Len, tapping his foot on the road.

After trying for Len several times, Piko reported to me in a disappointed and irritated tone, "He's not answering." He shook his head at me and sighed helplessly.

"Forget about Len for now! The ambulance is here!" I screeched as an ambulance came to a stop at the scene, its tires nearly searing the road from stopping so suddenly. They carried Rin carefully into the ambulance as to not break any of her already damaged limbs, and we loaded into the ambulance along with her. Just then, the driver of the car that hit Rin stepped out.

It was... it was Neru?! "I'm sorry! My mom is dying in the hospital, too!" she cried nervously, cupping her mouth in horror at what she had done. "I didn't mean to hurt anyone! I'm just in a rush! I'll follow you to the hospital for now, and we'll settle things later..." her voice trailed off. Neru's expression clearly showed her regret at her accident.

I nodded solemnly at her, still angry that someone could be so inconsiderate, then the ambulance doors closed and we sped off, heading speedily towards the hospital. _Hang on, Rin. Keep fighting._ I had to be strong for Rin. The fun afternoon had turned into a life-or-death situation for poor little Rin.

_The flashback ends_

A voice yelled commandingly," Rin! Where is she?!" It was Len. He had arrived at the hospital, dressed in a white T-shirt and shorts. "Where is Rin?" he demanded loudly and firmly, gesturing with his arms for effect. "Where is she? What happened?" Len, angry, looked as red as a beet.

"Len..." I started. "Neru... Hit Rin with her car."

"Neru WHAT?!"

"Calm down, Len. Let me explain."

"What is there to explain? You just told me my foster sister got hit by a car!" Len was enraged.

"Where is that Neru? I'm going to break all the bones in her body, like she did to Rin! How could she be so inconsiderate? She knows I'm in lov-" he cut himself off, as if he had regretted what he'd just blurted out. "I mean, she knows I love my sister Rin!"

"Len!"

Neru sprinted over to us, leaving a breeze in her path. "My mom is fine... but how is Rin doing?" she asked, worried. Neru fidgeted with her fingers, seeming genuinely concerned.

"No report yet from the doctors." I shook my head and shrugged helplessly, staring at the hospital tile, my eyes still swollen from crying. My heart beat quickly from my trembling nerves and worry for Rin. Would she be okay?

"Neru! You! Hit my sister with a car! You'll pay!" Len's furious voice echoed through the hospital walls as he shouted at her, Gakupo having left my side and working with Piko to hold Len back from beating Neru viciously to a pulp. "I hate you! Hate you! You are a BIG...FAT...NOTHING!" he screeched dangerously at her. "You hear me? Nothing!"

"Len." I approached him confidently and gripped him by his shoulders firmly. "Rin is going to be fine. Master is personally coming here and checking out the situation for himself. It's going to be fine. Master is the best. He created you and welcomed you here, after all, right?"

No reply, but it seemed as though I had calmed Len down temporarily for the moment.

"Rin will be fine. Promise." I tried to pat Len's head and comfort him.

"Promise?" Len's voice came out more like a squeak. He still had his shota voice.

"Promise." As soon as I responded to Len, the ER doors opened immediately, the doctors stepped out, and Master entered the room.

The doctors spoke up. "We're moving her to a new room for now. But..." his voice faded.

"But what?" Len questioned, a look of worry in his eyes.

"There are...complications..." he stopped, and swiftly strutted away with the rest of his team. "It is done, though. She will be fine. She is still alive," the doctor called back to us as he disappeared into another room.

Master suddenly emerged from the room, wiping his forehead off. "Her system has gone to rest."

"Is she... Is she DEAD?" Len inquired in bewilderment, putting his hands o his forehead in concern.

"No, she is in sleep mode. I managed to fix most of her system. Nothing serious. Rin is stable." Master scratched his brown hair and looked at us with red-rimmed eyes and bags, from being busy all the time. I almost felt bad for bothering him to come here.

"So..." I began. "Rin... is in a coma?" I guessed aloud, directing my question at Master.

"Yes, she is."

"How long will it be before she wakes?" Len wondered aloud to Master, anxious.

"Most likely weeks; three at the most. Until then, you should all wait," Master told all of us. "You have to relax. Rin is in a stable condition. If all goes well, Rin will recover quickly, and she'll be back in no time." Master looked away quickly. I knew he was obviously hiding something from us, so I decided to ask him more about Rin's system and her condition.

"What do you mean, 'If all goes well'?"

"There are complications. The doctors were right. If Rin doesn't fight, her system will malfunction and a virus will corrupt her. Then will come the need for her to be deactivated," Master replied sadly, gazing distantly at the floor.

"Have you had to ever deactivate anyone before?" Piko spoke up suddenly.

"Yes. But I have no desire to repeat the same process. It is painful and heartbreaking for family and close friends." Master clapped his hands loudly, and his mood changed at once. He looked up at us with his deep brown eyes. "Well, no need to deactivate Rin, though. She'll be fine!" Master waved at us, flashed an obviously fake smile, and dashed his young twenty six year-old self out of the hospital building.

I only hoped Rin would be fine.

I heard an abrupt yell from another room, which was the room Rin had been moved to for the moment. "AAAAAAHHHHHHH!" It was Piko's distinct high-pitched voice.

I sprinted towards the source of the yell, my heart beating faster and faster as I entered the darkly lit room. Rin was standing over Piko, her back stiff, and her eyes were trained on Piko. It was then that she looked directly at me with her eerily light blue eyes. An intense glow temporarily lit my vision as she turned to me.

I took a wary, hesitant step toward Rin. "Are you okay?"

Gakupo held me back fast, warning me. "Don't, Luka. Something's wrong." I ignored briefly Gakupo and took another step towards Rin. "Luka!" Gakupo whisper-shouted at me, shaking his head.

Rin cocked her head jerkily, as if she were under a trance. Her eyes looked creepy. They were starting to give me the notion that something was definitely wrong with Rin.

"Piko, what happened?" I questioned the frightened teenager. Piko stared at me, a grave look on his face. His eyes told me to run. _Dash for your life_, Piko's eyes seemed to say.

"Rin?" Len exclaimed happily upon prancing into the room. He ran up to her and hugged her tightly. "Rin! I thought you were going to stay in a coma for a long time! But here you are, awake and looking okay! I missed you for five hours! I couldn't imagine having no mirror image!" Upon hugging Rin, the glow disappeared from her eyes and she returned to normal old Rin. The lighting suddenly brightened as well, strangely.

"Len!" Rin nuzzled Len. "I felt like I was being isolated inside of me. Like something took over me! But I'm okay now, and-"

"You fools! Do you know that you can't defeat me that easily?" The voice had come from Piko's mouth. But it wasn't Piko's voice. It was a voice that seemed to boom out of all the walls as well. The room lights dimmed quickly once again, scaring the tuna out of me. I hugged Gakupo close.

The voice continued to speak. "I am a virus. I took over Rin's body and I transferred myself to Piko. His strong, healthy being is more fit for my task-to destroy you! Well, actually, I have other plans. We're going to play a game!" The voice laughed maniacally at us. We were all still confused about what was happening.

Rin whimpered. Len picked her up and carried her piggyback style out of the room, since her leg was still injured. "Run!" he called to the rest of us. "Get out!"

Piko dropped to the ground in a daze. He rubbed his head. "What happened? Why does my head hurt so much?" he complained lazily. The virus had taken over the hospital system. It had transferred into the hospital control! I thought quickly about it. The hospital was controlled by a series of computers. The doors, beds, room temperature, and desks were all computer-controlled.

If the virus could transfer that quickly, it would have time to close all the doors, locking us in and trapping us in the hospital, leaving us unable to escape! "To the doors!" I called urgently to everyone. I took Piko by the hand and dragged him to the doors, but it was too late. They had locked us in. The windows were too strong to be opened, so we had to find the next set of doors.

In the hospital, doctors, staff, patients, nurses, and visitors were dashing around, madly screaming for their lives. "The hunt has begun!" the voice boomed from everywhere, yet nowhere at all. The voice laughed and taunted us everywhere we were, attempting to faze us as we tried to flee. It was starting to seem like a game of cat-and-mouse to the virus.

Neru caught up with us and frantically yelled at us over the cries of the frightened people," I know a way out that's not computer-controlled! Follow me! I'll get you out!" She led the way for us and came to the opening of an air vent. It was large enough for all of us to get into, and follow each other. She gestured for Rin to enter the vent first. Neru left for a moment and came back with her mother, who was old and frail.

One by one, we filed into the vent, Neru's mother trailing behind, lagging. She lacked in strength and agility, as well as speed. The virus's voice echoed all around us, through the vents. "I'm going to detonate this building if I have to. I'm bringing you all down with me! Let the countdown begin!" The virus cackled and continued to count the seconds before the building exploded.

We all sped up, save for Neru's old mother, who constantly required Neru's aid and assistance. Even Rin crawled for her life. We came to the last part of the journey. "Jump down there and exit after climbing the bars. Just think of it as monkey bars," Neru said to us. Rin went first, Len jumped next, Piko hopped down, and Gakupo left as well, leaving Neru, I and her mother inside.

"Come on, Luka! I'm out! There's still time! You can make it!" Gakupo's voice echoed through the vent. Reluctant to leave Neru, I made the jump and landed easily down, light on my feet. I climbed the bars out cautiously and exited the building. I was out and safe, and so were the others.

"Neru!" I called to her. "Get out!" I heard the virus's voice count five seconds until detonation. "Neru!" I warned dangerously. I backed up and saw Neru slide out of the vent.

"Mother!" Neru yelled, her voice strained.

I heard the virus count zero, and I pulled Neru away from the building, sprinting towards the group. The building erupted into flames upon exploding, and even from a great distance, I could feel the hospital turn into a fiery inferno. I was knocked down by the force, and I sprawled on the ground, ducking from the impact. That virus was gone, and we were all safe, save for Neru's mother.

"Mother!" Neru cried, crazed. Officers, more ambulances, and fire trucks had arrived at the scene. No one but we had been able to escape. We were lucky. "Let me! I need to find my mother!" Neru shouted to the officers blocking her way.

"I'm sorry, miss, but you can't. Your mother may have not survived the force. I'm sorry," one of the officers informed Neru, clearly pitying her.

Miku and Mikuo rushed to us. They had left the water park early and obviously had missed out on a lot. "What happened?" Miku and Mikuo said in unison. Boy, they had a lot for us to fill them in on.

Another ambulance arrived to transfer Rin to another hospital. Len sat with her, and they sped away just as swiftly as the ambulance had gotten here.

This was all my fault. I couldn't blame Rin for getting hurt and transferring a virus to the hospital mainframe at the end. I was the one that didn't watch out for Rin, and now, she was hurt, more than forty people had been killed in the explosion, and Neru's mother was dead as well! I pulled Neru away, who was still kicking and screaming for her probably now-dead mother, Gakupo, Piko, Miku, and Mikuo trailed behind me wordlessly. We headed to my house.

**Rin's POV:**

I lay on a mattress resting on a hospital...badcart? I wasn't sure what it was called. The ambulance driver was heading towards the other hospital that lay on the opposite side of the town. Len lay sleeping on my surfboard-flat chest. I couldn't breathe!

"Len!" I quietly whisper-shouted in his ear. His head shot up suddenly upon hearing my voice.

"Huh? What?" Len woke up and looked at me. "Oh, you're awake!" He sat up straighter.

"Len, I've been awake the whole darn time."

"Why?"

"You were sleeping on my still surfboard-flat chest. Must be comfortable, hm?" My annoyed expression said it all.

"Oh! Sorry!" he replied, a blush spreading across his face. Len looked away from me, obviously embarrassed.

"Len, you're blushing!" I saw his face turn redder.

"Oh... really? I guess it's because you're so... adorable!" He reached over and pinched my cheeks lightly.

"Len, don't baby me!" I complained. "I'm seventeen! Same age as you!"

"Yeah, but you should remember-I'm older!" he responded in a singsong voice, being goofy again.

"Yeah, right. By like, one DAY." I emphasized the word "day".

"Still." He said this to me in an affectionate manner.

My thoughts wandered. "I sure hope the rest of the gang are okay," I wondered aloud.

"They are fine, don't worry. No need to fuss over them. Besides, you're the one that's still hurt." Len gestured at my injuries.

"I'm more worried about you." Len looked at me, sighing. "My beautiful Rin, all hurt."

"I'll be okay-wait. Did you just call me beautiful? And you claimed me as yours!" My eyes widened.

Len looked like he'd regretted saying that in front of me. "No, I mean, um... I mean... My dear sister is all hurt!"

"Oh, Len..." I called in a knowing voice, a smile forming on my lips, despite the pain I was in.

"No, it's not what you think!" Len blushed even more furiously.

"Oh, yes it is..." Now it was my turn to break out the singsong. "We aren't really siblings, you know that..." I trailed off.

"Darn, Rin, it isn't!" Len whined, a cute little look on his face. His expression was priceless!

"You like me!" I teased, grinning at him.

"No..." he continued to whine, but his voice was hesitant.

"You like me!"

"No!" A whiny voice.

"You do!" I teased him.

"I don't!" Whining again.

"You want to kiss me!" I made a smoochy face. "Mwah! Mwah!" I giggled at Len girlishly.

"Okay, now that's just getting annoying!" Len cried defiantly.

"Hee hee!" I poked his nose gently.

"Shut up!" He yelled quietly. He leaned down, paused to think a bit, and crushed his lips against mine. Which, basically, could be considered as a full-on lips kiss.

I was completely stunned. For a long time, I didn't pull away. Actually, I couldn't, because I was pinned to the mattress by Len's kiss, and as everyone knows, you can't just back through a mattress like some ghost! During our extended kiss, I didn't close my eyes the whole time like the people did in movies that I saw. I kept my eyes wide open, gazing at Len's expression; his face showed he was experiencing pure bliss. I saw a blush cover his entire face and laughed in my mind. _Oh, Len. Flustered, unaware Len._ But I began to feel as if as a blush was covering my face as well.

The heat was getting to me: Len's body heat, his blushing heat, and my blushing heat, to be more specific. I liked it; the kiss felt wonderful and blissful! And I realized, I really did like Len. Good thing Len was my foster brother, too, otherwise this would probably be considered really forbidden!

I realized then that Len still had his lips pressed firmly against mine, and I tried to slowly squirm away. But I couldn't get anywhere or do anything except for continue to squirm against Len, which, in turn just made the kiss deeper. My hands were still too badly injured to be able to muster any strength up to push Len off of me. I was utterly and completely trapped. I could feel Len's breath on my face, warm and steady. _Why are you taking so long, Len? I'm suffocating here!_

If I could snap at him, I would've, but unfortunately, my mouth was already occupied at the moment. After what seemed like hours, Len pulled away for breath, face red, and he was clearly embarrassed. The kiss still lingered on my lips, leaving me in a half-daze.

A long pause sat like a brick wall between us. Len finally spoke up, his voice taking on a serious tone. "I do like you, yes, Rin. I admit it. You're right. We've known each other our whole lives. I know you well, but not enough to be able to tell if you feel the same way. You don't have to; I just do." He tore his bright blue-eyed gaze away from me, instead looking at the ambulance interior intently, as if medical equipment mounted on the interior walls of an ambulance seemed suddenly very interesting to him.

I didn't mean to make him feel like a fool; I just wanted to have a little fun. I knew that I shouldn't have jeopardized our relationship, and if I my body didn't ache so intensely, I would have sit up and pat his back, apologizing to him.

"Len?" My voice squeaked like I was some kind of mouse.

No reply came.

Suddenly, a jolt of pain shot suddenly through my body, paralyzing me. I let out a bloodcurdling scream; the pain seemed to feel like I'd walked into a pool of lava and had been shocked by lighting afterwards. Len immediately turned to me, his expression having changed from upset to intensely concerned.

"Len, my leg!"

"What's wrong, Rin?"

"I have a broken leg!"

"I know that, but why are you screaming? I thought it didn't hurt that much!"

"Well, it does now!"

"What can I do?"

"Press on it!"

"Where?"

"I don't know! I'm not a doctor or a nurse!"

Minutes later, after the incredibly long journey, Len and I arrived at the hospital, me having a seizure. I was in a terribly bad condition. After they put me to sleep, I could feel the pain going away at last. My heart rate slowed, and I calmed down a lot. But something didn't feel quite right as my eyelids came to a close.

**Len's POV:**

"What do you mean, she's dead?"

"I said your sister is dead! I'm sorry." The doctor replied to me solemnly, looking me straight in the eye.

"Okay, this is a joke, right?"

"I'm being serious. Your sister's heart has stopped beating."

As soon as I heard that, I stopped trying to pretend this was all a joke. The doctor nodded to a door that led to a room. I headed towards the door, wrenched it open, and stepped into the room cautiously, shutting the door behind me. What I saw then scared me half to death, but upset me to the ends of the earth.

Rin's face had lost its radiant shine; instead, that had been replaced with a deathly pale white color, ghostly in its own way. I took tiny steps to the bed that Rin lay on. Her chest was not moving, not even a little bit. Rin didn't stir at all, either. There was no sign of movement whatsoever. And then unbelieving, I put a finger to her nose for one whole minute and held it there. No breaths. Rin always told me that she couldn't hold her breath longer than 30 seconds.

No, this couldn't be true; it had to be impossible! Rin couldn't be dead now; she had been breathing an hour ago! But I knew it was the only true thing now: Rin most certainly had passed away. And I wanted to punch Neru in the gut for this. But I knew I couldn't either. Rin wouldn't want me to hurt somebody because of her.

I slumped into a chair beside her bed and held Rin's cold, pale, skinny hands. She was bruised all over her body, and something must have gotten to her heart. No, the broken leg certainly hadn't caused her to die. It wasn't enough. For the first time in years, I let tears drip from my eyes slowly and silently.

Even though I knew she couldn't hear me, I still spoke aloud. "Are you alive, Rin? Alive and well? Is this all a joke?" I laughed at myself, half in a craze. I smiled, but it disappeared instantly. I rubbed Rin's hand.

Rin's heart had stopped beating, all right. But the doctors still had hope, and devoted, they had refused to give up on her. I sat by Rin's side and thought. My train of thought broke when I heard a beeping sound come from the heart monitor by Rin's bed. There it beeped.

Rin's heart, according to the monitor, was beating again! Rin... could it be, was alive? I shook her shoulders gently as the monitor seemed t come to live with a series of fast, rapid beeps. Rin's heart began to beat at a normal rate again! Which meant...Rin would live again! I almost cried again from being so happy. Rin fought against death, and won! She didn't leave me here alone, all by myself.

I gazed at Rin's face intently, and could see the color and radiance creeping back into her complexion. Her hands suddenly felt warm and firm, not pale and cold. Rin still looked frail from the injuries she had, but she lived! And then came the final happening: Rin's eyes flickered open!

I then realized that I had been crying, and I would probably look like a weirdo with puffy eyes standing next to her bed. I was still wearing my white shirt and swimming trunks.

A throaty cough emerged from Rin. Several more followed after, building up into a barrage of them, like a bunch of bullets being shot at once. Rin propped herself up on the pillows, and I helped her, gently placing the pillows around her and behind her back.

I glanced at Rin's face. Her expression remained as blank as a white piece of paper, scaring me-had Rin lost her emotions? I nervously began to speak to her.

"Rin."

Rin didn't respond except for turning to look at me.

"Can you talk?"

"Yes." That reply relieved me a million, but I still had some other concerns.

"Did you lose your memory?"

"No." Progress had finally been made.

"How are you feeling, Rin?" I tried to show my concern for Rin.

"A bit cold. Len?" Rin's voice took on a question tone.

"Can you hug me? Keep me warm? I feel like I've been put through the cold continent of Antarctica or something. Please?" I couldn't refuse; besides, Rin didn't have a contagious disease. She just was a car accident victim.

I scooted my seat closer to her bed and sat on her bed, leaning down to hug Rin. Whoa. She was telling the truth; though Rin did appear warmer than when her heart stopped beating, this seemed as if Rin had lost all of her body heat.

"Rin? I have some things to tell you," I blurted out suddenly.

"What is it?" Rin inquired, curious. Obviously Rin had no idea her heart had stopped beating for ten minutes, and a miracle happened, which made her come back to life.

"You just died for ten minutes. I thought you were dead," I replied, my voice taking on an emotional tone. "And I cried for the first time in a long time. I thought I was going to lose you forever, and you would leave me all alone. And...I have to say this," I continued solemnly.

"OH MY ORANGES! I DIED...for TEN MINUTES?!" Rin repeated, alarmed. "So that's why I felt so cold! I died! I-...Oh, you were going to say something, Len? Sorry," Rin apologized quickly and closed her mouth, pretending to zip it.

"Yeah, Rin. I know it's been weird, lving our lives as siblings and then finding out we were not really related a while ago. And now that I have the chance, I just want to say..."

"You totally hate me?" Rin wondered aloud innocently.

"No, I-"

"You found a new house to move to?"

"That's not what I was going to-"

"You found a girlfriend?"

"Actually, I was just going to say that-"

"She's really pretty and you're moving to her house?"

"Rin, oh, are you just combining your ideas? No, that's not-"

"Oh, I know! You're going to say-" Rin coughed ,"-I am awesome because I fought death and won!"

I had enough of these interruptions already. I had to stop all this madness! "Actually, that's true, but, Rin, I-"

"Hate how I interrupt you?"

"No, Rin-would you please stop-"

"Doing-"

"Darn it, Rin, stop interrupting me! I just wanted to tell you, I cried for you and I worried about you and do all the brotherly things for you because I love you! I'm in love with you! Okay? You're sweet and innocent, kind and caring, a bit on the childish side at times, but it's what makes you! I love you! I don't just like you. I just wanted to say this to you because...because I realize how fragile your life is now, and I wanted to tell you before anything ever happened to you again! I L-O-V-E YOU. Okay?"

"You...love me?"

"Yes..."

"Len, I'm not sure how thick I was to not realize it all these years! I didn't know!"

"Do you...do you love me?" It felt pretty strange, asking a question like that.

"Oh, Len! I DO love you! I just wasn't sure if you did!"

"Well, I do! That's clear now! I love you, and will go to the ends of the earth if anyone ever takes you away from me-I would die for you, as a brother...and...a...lover... You're my little Rinny, okay? You are mine, and don't hang around any boys that hurt you or aren't our friends. If I catch you running off with another boy, you and I are going to have a talk! Got that?" I winked and smiled slyly.

Rin giggled a bit, but suddenly, she started coughing again. "I need...I..."

I pat her back. "Enough of that coughing. I'm getting a doctor." As soon as I said the last word, I got up, and swiftly walked out of Rin's hospital room, leaving her to her coughing fits. I got the doctor, and after treating Rin, he informed me that the coughing was caused by some internal bruising or other.

_Three weeks later_

Recovered from the accident, Rin left the hospital, and I escorted her home, a new light forming in my eyes. Rin was mine now. It took quite a while for me to forgive Neru for almost killing Rin, but I did. And now, Rin and I have gotten even closer. We've gone through a lot, and Rin almost died, but we lived in the end, through all the problems we faced. Rin and I are a team! Go bananas and oranges!

* * *

**Please ignore the mistakes if there are any-sorry! This is my super longest chapter so far! New record, so hooray! I already have several new series in mind! After this, I'm writing some more chapters, finishing the train of chapters, then starting new stories! Hope you enjoyed this! :)**

**Notes:**

**"Master" is just the guy that created all the official Vocaloids. They all live in a city together, with Master as the mayor. All the fanloids and genderbents came later, and unlike the Vocaloids, they all have parents. Vocaloids don't have parents. When Rin got a virus, it was from her damaged system, and it was like a computer virus plus a regular one, that controlled systems and was contagious among the Vocaloids. All the Vocaloids in this story are part human, part android, so they age, but are still machines. The more minor Vocaloids live on the opposite side of the city as the more popular ones. That's why Haku lived so far from the school, so to say. The genderbents all live right next to their originals.  
**

**I just thought my story needed some explaining, so I put the information there above so you could be able to better understand the story. **

**Review, okay? Don't be one of those silent readers; if you are that's okay. You may already know this, but reviews make me update faster, thank you! Review review review! I care about all my readers! **

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